Her Finest Piece of Magic
by MissyMoeDoe
Summary: This is about love and family, friendship, pain (physically, mentally and emotionally) and having to move on anyway. Because even though you might be able to make time stand still for a little while, life will always go on.
1. Muggle Hospitals

**So this is my first chapter fic. Please have patience with me.**

**This fic is about love and family, friendship, pain (physically, mentally and emotionally) and having to move on anyway. Because, well, you might be able to make time stand still for a little while, life will always go on.**

**Whoever reads this, a couple of things to remember, Charlie Beth is a little girl from the Southern part of the US that stutters. So she drops letters from her words and has trouble pronouncing some. Her age and the stuttering making it even a bit more difficult. As I was raised in the southern US and the rest of my family still lives there, I promise you that my nieces and nephews have the same accent. Their words come out sounding just as they are "spelled/spelt" (depending on where you're from) Or that I have tried to spell them. Anyway, that's where the accent that she has comes from**. R&R.

**_I own nothing. It always has and always will belong to JK Rowling._**

**Muggle Hospitals**

Stepping out of the elevator Charlie Weasley thought to himself. 'If they're at a muggle hospital something bad has to have happened.' He ran his fingers through his long shaggy red hair. Being there made him nervous.

~ The last time that he'd been in one was when he had received a muggle telegram saying that Norberta, Griff, and Fabian were in an accident and were at an A&E in London. He almost threw up on the spot. He knew who it was immediately. The last part of the note was odd. It said for him to come to them clean. He'd hoped that he understood that part right and that they weren't actually talking about him taking a shower. So, he went with his gut instinct and traveled the first halfway by magic and the second by muggle transport.

He had just entered the hospital when he heard his name and looked up to see two skinny teens running at him. He didn't think twice about grabbing them and hugging them. Then it hit him. Ron wasn't with them.

They took him to his little brother's room, then explained that they had been trying to get away from Yaxley after fleeing from the Ministry and Ron had been splinched. When they were finally safe Hermione had used almost all of her medical supplies trying to heal him. She knew she needed more help and that they couldn't go back into any magical community, so she and Harry decided to take him a muggle hospital. It would allow them to get Ron help and also give them a chance to restock some supplies. Charlie understood then and asked them what they needed. It took him less than 12 hours to go back to the reserve and get them the magical supplies they had asked for plus some that he thought might be useful and come back. They had made him promise to use no magic near them and no contacting anyone about them. It was imperative that no one knew about him having seen or heard from them.

Charlie can say it was one of the few times that he didn't care if anyone saw his tears. The night that he left them in that hospital to go back to the reserve not knowing what was going to happen to them and that he couldn't do anything else to help was one of them. When he walked out of the hospital that night he did throw up. ~

Walking around the corner, he spotted the mass of redheads sitting in a room lined with glass windows, listening to a muggle nurse. He couldn't hear what was being said but when he saw Ron put his hands over his face and his shoulders start to shake, Charlie began to run. His little brother showed almost no emotion these days. He'd been through and seen too much. So, for Ron to breakdown, meant whatever it was, was bad. Very bad.

The nurse was making her way out of the room as he opened the door. Charlie barely gave her glance as she moved around him; he was busy taking stock of everyone there.

Jenny was standing in the corner, arms wrapped around her middle, tears running down her face. The twins were in some seats that lined the right side of the room; their faces pale, sitting in shocked silence. Bill was standing in the back of the room rubbing the heels of his hands into his eyes. Even Percy looked like he'd been gut kicked. Then there was Ron. He'd slid down the wall beside the door and was shaking; sobbing uncontrollably. His hands clenched, breath coming out in tight huffs.

Charlie knelt down in front of his parents. His mother's face was turned into his father's shoulder. "Mum?"

When she wouldn't look up at him, he glanced up at his father. He was shocked to see him crying as well. Charlie couldn't remember the last time he'd seen his dad cry. He pushed himself up and looked around.

"Would someone tell me what is going on."

Ron's snort made him look over at him. It wasn't the look of anguish that surprised him but the anger he saw there. He was fairly certain that if they were anywhere else but there, his little brother would be attempting to kick his arse.

Looking back and forth between all of them again he said "Would someone please tell me what's happened? What is it?" A moment later a terrible thought struck him. "Oh no..is it… where's Harry?"

When no one answered him, he reached over and touched his father's shoulder, "Dad?" Arthur didn't address the question Charlie had asked. Instead, all he said as he looked up at him was, "She's passed away son."

"What?" It had come out as a whisper. He knew who they were talking about. She'd disappeared from their lives almost 4 years ago. When she had initially left, it was to find her parents, restore their memories and bring them home. They all had heard that she didn't do it but not why she didn't. All that was known was that she hadn't decided just what she was going to do. Time went on and she just didn't come back. That's it.

He was still trying to process what his father had said when the door opened behind him.

Turning quickly, Charlie took in the sight before him.

There stood Harry Potter holding a sleeping little girl against his shoulder. The room was quiet as his eyes glanced from Harry back to the little girl. She had dark strawberry blonde hair curling wildly down her back. Little tan arms and legs stuck out of a t-shirt and pair of cut off muggle jeans. A shoestring on one of the tiny orange converses she wore had come undone. When she began to wiggle, he watched as Harry ran his hand up and down her back.

A soft heavily accented little voice quietly said "Mm-my Air?"

"Yeah, Charlie Beth" Harry answered staring directly at Charlie.

His mind raced to try to add up everything in front of him. The realization hit him hard. His eyes closed for a fraction of a second before snapping back open while memories swept through his mind. The night before his wedding. Under a star-filled sky, down by the pond. Her gentle touch. Scarred, silk skin under his rough, callused hands and a pair of soft brown eyes flashed through his mind. They had made the world stand still for each other for a while.

"As mmm-my mm-momma lef t-tay-care nnn-nana an-an ongspaw?" Sleep heavy in her voice.

"Yes, Charlie Beth" Harry answered as he swallowed hard.

From the moment he realized who she was Charlie hadn't been able to take his eyes off her.

Other than a quiet choked sob that came from the floor beside them, the room was silent as she kept talking.

She flipped her little head over and laying it back down with her face tucked into Harry's neck.

"M-my m-momma s-sayid." A big yawn left her before she went on."W-when d-does I..I p-post go t-tay-care a-a'you an..an m-my daddy." ...another small yawn left her.. "an an an mm-my fama-lee."

Charlie watched as she kicked her little feet into Harry's stomach but the only thing that made its way into his mind was that she had to go take care of her daddy. Her daddy. Him. His mind breaking it down for a second time just to make sure.

Harry had started to sway a little side to side. "Shuushh. Go back to sleep. We'll get it all sorted tomorrow."

Charlie was brought out of his thoughts when she raised up, placed her hands on Harry's cheeks, looking directly into his eyes and said "N-no mmm-my Air. Mm-momma sss-sayid so. She sss-sayid po-post to ight af-affer. Is-Is por-portnant. C-cause s-she sss-sayid so." Curls bounced as she nodded when she explained it to him.

Harry's face broke out into a small grin as he half-whispered to her "Ok we'll leave straight away my bug."

Happy with the answer she was given she laid her little head back over on his shoulder and snuggled into him.

Looking over at Molly, silently asking if it were ok.

"Oh yes," Charlie heard her say, "take her home Harry."

Arthur patted his wife's hand and stood and said, "Harry, if it's ok with you, we'll go let Minerva and the others know." while wiping his eyes with a hanky. "She wanted to know as soon as she passed...said it didn't matter when."

Harry nodded "Thanks, Arthur. That'd be great."

A couple of seconds passed and then he said, "Actually, I'd be glad for any help you and Molly are willing to give me."

Harry looked around the room trying to catch all of their eyes, then landing on Charlie's as a couple of tears made their way down his own face. "That goes for anyone."

Harry glanced back towards Molly, who was now standing. "Hermione tried to make it as easy as she could with the magical and muggle side of everything and she probably explained it a ton of times" he let out a shaky breath "but honestly I still feel lost."

As he cleared his throat again Arthur reached his hand out and gently ran it down his sleeping granddaughter's back. "Anything."

Charlie barely heard any of the discussion going on around him, his eyes were trained on his daughter. 'My daughter' he thought to himself. He zoned back in when he heard Harry say "I'll take her through the floo at Grimwald Place to the Burrow."

Harry had knelt down and was quietly saying something to Ron. Once his brother nodded Harry stood up and turned towards the door. Charlie found himself staring into the bright green eyes of the Chosen One. "Is she... does she..what.." He had so many questions but with every word, his voice grew more strained. He tipped his head down when Harry leaned a little toward him and said "It's ok. We'll talk tomorrow. Yeah?"

All Charlie could say as he nodded was "Please."


	2. Promise

**In this chapter, there is a bit about Hermione's religion. It won't be specifically gone into. It just needed to be explained a bit as to why a certain action was being done. I struggled with this chapter and I still don't have it as exact as I would like it. **

**~Promise~**

Charlie watched through the glass as the doors to the elevator slid closed cutting off his view of his daughter, then turned to face his parents.

"Did you know?" He looked between the two of them. Then turned, "Did all of you know about my daughter?" he asked looking around the room at his siblings.

Arthur could see that his son was struggling with his feelings and knew that the anger would probably come out first. He was hoping to be well away from this place and back on magical soil before it happened. "No."

But he wouldn't lie to him either. Glancing at his wife and added, "Only your mother and Harry knew before early this morning." When he saw Charlie immediately tense up, he went on "Come on son. Let's go. We need to get back to the burrow." He stopped himself short of saying 'for Harry and Charlie Beth.'

Charlie stared at his mum. "Why?"

She took a step toward him and said "Please Charlie. I promise I will explain." He could see the pain in her eye's but it didn't lessen the anger beginning to build in him.

"Well?" It came out harsh, clipped. He could feel himself starting to vibrate. His magic was beginning to pulse deep in his core.

Before either of them could say anything else he felt a hand on his shoulder. Glancing back, he thought he would see Bill standing there but was surprised to see Percy instead.

"Charlie. Do you…. I mean would you like to see her?"

The question struck him dumb.

"The nurse said when you came that if you wanted to see Hermione you could."

Somewhere in the back of his mind it registered that Percy seemed to be the only one of his siblings still able to function. No one else in the room was moving. "If you want" Percy continued, "I'll come with you."

He didn't know how he felt about going to see her dead body, but he knew that he had to. He had to see for himself that she was gone. Maybe it would help with trying to sort out some of his feelings. Especially the anger.

"Yeah..." He said as he turned to follow Percy out the door.

Bill watched his younger brother lead Charlie out of the room and made the decision to follow them. As he passed his parents and Ron he paused and said, "Whether the choices of Hermione and Charlie were right or wrong, that little girl is still Charlie's. He deserved to know." He didn't wait for them to say anything back, just picked up his step to catch up to his brothers.

When Ron jumped up and left the room behind Bill, Arthur quickly followed him out, worried that he was going to confront his brother. He slowed down when he saw Ron go through a door that was marked as the exit stairs at the end of the hallway.

Arthur rubbed a hand over his face. He felt so tired right then. It was as if the world had upended on him and he was just trying to keep everything from falling and breaking into pieces.

Looking up he said, "Help us out here." Turning, he could see his wife and the rest of his children looking more lost than he'd seen them since the war. "Please." He added.

Arthur knew Hermione had a strong belief in her Christian upbringing. After several long conversations about it, she had gifted him with a muggle bible. She believed that her Lord made everything on earth and that included the magical world. It had taken him the better part of a year to get through the book, and that was with the help that Hermione could give. Even though he didn't understand a lot of things in it, he found that he took comfort in the peace that the book tried to convey. Especially during and after the war. It helped to think that all his friends and family were in a peaceful, beautiful place together, full of light and love. Waiting and watching out for the ones that were still here on earth. No, he didn't convert to Christianity. He still held his magical rites and beliefs close to his heart as he always had but he did form a genuine respect for the muggle religion and Hermione's solid faith in it. So out of respect for her beliefs, he spoke to her through her religion. Or at least he hoped that he did.

He sighed heavily as he made his way back to collect the remaining family members and head back to the burrow. He knew that his three eldest would be coming back there. The only one that he was worried about not coming back any time soon was Ron. And to be perfectly honest, he couldn't blame his son if he didn't.

* * *

Charlie looked down at the thin grayish face of Hermione. He didn't know what he expected to feel or happen. Maybe, somehow, she would let loose some of the answers that he needed. His anger towards her for not telling him about getting pregnant and having his daughter were lessened but not taken away.

Charlie was a peace lover. Most of the time he chose to laugh even at the hard things because he believed that anger would only eat you alive. Making a person a ball of bitter sadness that didn't live but just existed. He'd seen it happen and that's not how he wanted to live. Yet, here he stood, somehow expecting Hermione to tell him the words that he needed to hear to make it all ok so that he didn't become that. Though, in truth, he had no idea what those words would have been.

A teardrop fell on the sheet that was coving her body. He hadn't even known he was crying.  
He reached up and roughly pushed the tears away from his face. "Why?" he whispered to her. "I would've helped…been there for you and her. I would've done anything you asked….needed."

He reached and brushed the back of his finger across her cheek. It was cold, so different from the last time he'd touched her. He bent and placed a kiss on her forehead, then with his lips still touching her, said "Please rest easy Hermione…I don't know how…" sucking in a wet breath he continued "but I promise on my magic that I'll try for the rest of my life to be the best dad for our daughter that I can."

Charlie quickly turned from the gurney, walked out the door and began jogging down the hallway. He didn't stop to talk to either of his brothers. He needed away. He needed air.

As he ran through the exit door, down the stairwell and out the sliding doors of the hospital, he decided muggle hospitals were some of the most horrible places on earth. Every time he went to one, they made him sick to his stomach and left his heart hurting.


	3. Stubborn

**I almost forgot. JK Rowling owns it all. I just play with her characters for funzies.**

**~Stubborn~**

Harry reached behind him with his free hand and grabbed the door to keep it from closing too hard and waking the little girl he had held against him that was still blessedly sound asleep. Several times between the hospital and his godfathers' house he'd held her closer and wept as quietly as he could. He'd only just gotten his tears under control before he stepped out of the cab in front of Grimmauld place.

The dark corridor had a slight light at the end of it. A signal that his godfather was awake and waiting for him to get there.

He hadn't even thought of getting a hold of him beforehand so it had to have been Arthur or one of the other Weasleys that sent a Patronus letting Sirius know that they would be coming through there.

He still hadn't told his godfather anything about Hermione or Charlie Beth and he didn't even know how to start right then. He didn't think he would have even been able to at that point.

As he made his way down the hall, Sirius opened the door from the kitchen. The older man looked from Harry to Charlie Beth and back. Sadness, confusion, and worry written all over his face. Harry quickly held up a finger to his lips, his godfather gave him a slight nod and then tipped his head towards the lounge off to the right. Harry nodded then mouthed 'Thank You'.

Sirius followed him in and placed his hand on Harry's other shoulder and lean in and whispered to him that they needed to talk tomorrow. Harry then couldn't seem to stop the tears that started making their way quietly but constantly down his face again. When he thought Sirius might say something until he shook his head.

His godfather reached over and placed his hand on the side of Harry's face and wiped away some of the tears and nodded his understanding. He let Harry get into the floo and then grabbed some power and threw it in for him.

The last thing that Harry saw as he clearly but quietly stated 'The Burrow" was Sirius looking up while wiping his own eyes. He didn't know why but seeing the older man crying had made his tears fall harder.

Stepping out of the fireplace he walked over and placed the little girl on the couch, covering her with the quilt that had been draped over the back of it. A sad smile crossed his face as he thought of her telling him that he needed to get her here now. 'You are so like her my bug.' he thought to himself as he wiped away his tears once again. Hermione's face flashed through his mind and he was lost in a memory. One of a thousand that threatened to tear him apart every time they entered his mind.

_**~memory~**_

"_Harry...Harry" Her voice sounded tight, edgy. "Harry, we need to go." _

_Opening his eyes, he saw Hermione standing in the doorway with one hand on the underside of her belly and her beaded bag in the other._

_Panic hit him and he sat up immediately. Harry had never been so glad to have slept in his clothes in all his life. "It's time?"_

_She nodded and at the same time bent forward and groaned. _

_Jumping out of the bed, he ran and helped her over to it to sit. "Hermione?"_

_As she looked up at him, he knew that she'd waited till she couldn't stand it anymore to wake him. Aggravation and irritation made him clench his jaw tight._

"_Please Harry," Another groan left her. After taking a few deep breaths she continued, "They're not bad yet and I knew it would be a while and you had just gotten here. You were so tired."_

_Shaking his head he said, "It doesn't matter how tired I was. Right now, it's about you and the baby." Then he added, "I'll deal with yelling at you after. How far apart are they?" _

_After a little laugh, she said, "I'll look forward to it." Then at his pointed look she grimaced and said, "I guess... they're about 18 minutes apart now."_

_As far as guesses went that was pretty specific. _

_"HERMIONE!" He couldn't help it, with her complications she knew better._

"_You said you'd wait to yell at me. Now is not the time. We have to go." She rushed out._

_Harry again placed his aggravation at his best friend on the back burner. "You'll be lucky if I can hold out that long. Now come on, we have to get you to the hospital."_

_Nodding, Hermione bent a little to the side to push up from the bed while holding onto Harry's arm as he helped her back to her feet. _

"_You good?" he asked._

_Her lips tight, she took a deep breath and said, "Yes. Now we have to let Molly know and I need to let Mrs. Davids know to pick up the mail and we really need to stop by the store .." _

_Harry stood there for about a half a second listening to her start talking before he tried to calmly say, "Hermione! We are **not** stopping at any store."_

_It didn't come out all that calmly._

_She was taking another deep breath as she said, "We have to let Molly know." Her face had that stubborn look on it and he knew she wasn't easily going to give in to reason.  
So he proposed a compromise, "Fine. But the mail and whatever else you had planned is not going to happen before you get to the hospital. I'll send Molly a message just as soon as…."_

"_No Harry, we have to let Molly know now." The look that she gave him pleaded with him. "Please. She needs to be here. " At his own stubborn look, she added softly, "I really want her here." _

_After just a few seconds he caved, sighed and said, "Ok fine. Come on. Let's get you at least moving in the right direction."_

"_Now, you get ahold of Molly and I'll call Mrs. Davids and ask her to pick up the mail." She seemed to relax somewhat and was breathing and moving a little easier. _

_He laughed as he helped her down the stairs. "You're too stubborn for your own good. You know you're lucky that I don't just apparate us to the hospital, right?"_

_Rolling her eyes at him as she took the last step down and started toward the phone in the kitchen, "You wouldn't. You know the dangers of apparating a pregnant woman anywhere." Slowing down she turned to him and said, "Oh and remind Molly that she has the emergency port key we reserved for her. The last false alarm she almost tore the international port key office apart trying to get one to get here." _

_Sighing and shaking his head, he walked into the living room to fire call Molly. _

_**~end memory~**_

Harry spun on his heal in front of the couch that was holding his sleeping 'bug' and had his wand pulled the second he felt a hand on his back.

Three people took a step back.

"It's ok Harry. It's just us." Molly had stepped forward in front of Arthur and Fred. Then placed her hand on his outstretched arm. "You're both safe son."

He felt like all the air had been let out of him. He couldn't remember the last time someone caught him off guard. Lowering his wand, he nodded and looked back over his shoulder to make sure that Charlie Beth hadn't woke.

When he looked back at them Molly said. "Come, let's go to the kitchen. I"ll put on the kettle for some tea."

Nodding he glanced back over at the couch, then followed the rest of them out of the room.


	4. Whiskey and Backyard Quidditch Pitches

**Everything HP always has and always will belong to JK Rowling**

"'-'" ..means Charlie is thinking that he's thinking but it's really him speaking out loud.

R&R

**Whiskey and Backyard Quidditch Pitches**

When his brothers caught up with him outside of the emergency room doors, Charlie was bent over wiping the last of the spit off his mouth with the back of his hand.

"Come on brother, let's get you out of here. "

His brother knew that in the shape Charlie was in he wouldn't be able to apparate anywhere, so it was no surprise when Charlie felt Bill grab his arm and side-long him to the makeshift quidditch pitch out behind the Burrow.

A few seconds later a pop alerted them both to Percy's arrival.

His little brother walked over and handed him a bottle of Muggle whiskey and said, "Here, you look like you've needed this for a while tonight."

Charlie nodded and whispered, "Thanks." Then unscrewed the top, taking a long drink as he took off across the pitch.

It hit his already upset stomach like a hot rock but only took a few seconds for it to burn itself out. Leaving a warm feeling in it.

He passed the bottle over to Bill who took a swig and handed it back to Percy as Charlie dropped down to on to the grass, with his brother's following his lead.

They all sat in the middle of the pitch like they had done when they were younger.

He'd been waiting for them to start asking questions. But neither of them said anything until about half the bottle was gone.

That's when Bill looked over at him and asked, "Did you love her?"

He'd been expecting that question and gave a truthful answer, "Yes, as a friend that understood me, but not romantically."

"Did she love you?" came from his little brother.

Percy had surprised both of them that night by being the guy that they knew before he got mixed up in everything at the Ministry and the war. They had missed the quiet smart kid that saw more than he let on. Other than their father, he and Bill felt the loss of him the most. He was their quiet shadow from the time that he started to walk. It was easy to have him around. It wasn't that he wasn't loved by his mother or father, it was more that he didn't demand the type of attention that the twins or their other two younger siblings had needed.

Things between them all changed after they moved away. Where he and Bill had stayed close, Percy became solitary.

He and his older brother knew that after they left, all the responsibility that their mum had laid on all three of them before, landed squarely on Percy's shoulder. Where the younger ones would listen to Bill or himself, it became a joke to see how much Percy could take before he blew up. Then the twins started their home experiments, which Percy was often the recipient of. The more time past, the more he changed. Not that either of them could really blame him.

Charlie nodded and swallowed the mouthful of whiskey he'd just taken from the bottle. "But in the same way that I loved her." then handed it back to Bill.

"You're sure that she didn't feel anything more for you?" That question had come from Bill right before he took a long drink and then handed it to Percy. "She could have had feelings for you and not said anything."

The thing about Bill was that he always wanted a straight answer for everything. He wanted everything to have a clear reason. Good or bad, even if there wasn't one.

"I'm sure Bill. We did talk before sex." He said as he grabbed the bottle back from Percy, who had been sitting there reading the label instead of drinking. He was getting aggravated and he hated being aggravated. He decided he needed to stop that before his mood got worse.

"It wasn't about love." After taking another drink he continued, "Hell it wasn't even about lust."

He tried to hand the bottle to Bill, but he shook his head signaling he didn't want anymore. Instead, he said to Charlie, "Then I don't understand. I'd never have pegged Hermione to do anything like a one-off."

He took his brother's shot for him then another for himself. The whiskey was beginning to hit him hard.

Charlie's gaze was turning foggy as he answered, "She wasn't a one-off." he paused then said, "exactly. More like commiseration sex." Looking up to see if Bill got it.

He was tired and his brain felt like mush. "If there is such a thing as commiseration sex."

Percy who had been quietly listening as he started pulling up blades of grass said, "Yes, there is, I think." His words were slower. Like he was carefully picking them.

Charlie wondered if the alcohol was making him do that or was it just something that Percy did that he never noticed.

'Nah' he decided 'there wouldn't have been as many fights in the family if it were something his younger brother did all the time. Perce was just feeling the drink.'

He tuned back into what his little brother was saying, "It's like in the old war stories where two soldiers turned to each other because they just needed somebody." He was still pulling up blades of grass as he continued, "Didn't matter if they were the same gender but perfectly straight under normal conditions. It wasn't about the sex."

When Percy finally looked up at them, he said, "It was about the people."

A small grin broke out across Charlie's face and before he thought about it, he said, "You know Perce, I think this muggle whiskey is making you smarter."

Bill fell back on the grass laughing as Charlie dodged the tuft of grass that was chucked at him.

After his laughter died down Charlie's smile wavered for a moment before he admitted, "Yeah, little brother it was something kinda like that." It was good to have Percy back.

"I guess I'm still trying to wrap my head around why. You said it was the night before your wedding right?" Bill looked over to watch him nod. "And you were happy to be getting married to Julie? "  
Charlie gave him another nod as he swallowed another drink before setting the bottle down and leaning back on the grass beside his older brother.

The world had gone a little woozy on him and Charlie decided that maybe he just needed to lie down.

"'It's comfortable on the grass.'" he decided so he closed his eyes. "'just for a minute'" he told himself.

Charlie listened as Percy started talking again. "Oh no. Billy come on, we have to get him inside or mum will skin us both."

When felt his arms being pulled upward but in two separate directions Charlie figured he'd tell them to just go on. "I'll just stay here for a bit."

His eyes were really being wrong and wouldn't stay still to focus on anything.

"'Can eyes be wrong?'" he thought to himself.

He heard Percy start laughing and then say, "Yeah big brother. If you drink enough whiskey your eyes can be wrong."

Charlie disagreed and thought to himself. "'Nooo…whiskey is good. Eyes are the bad ones.'"

That's when he heard Bill—Billy start laughing.

Charlie had a sudden thought, "'Oh no, Percy can hear inside my head and he told Billy.'"

His arms were shaking and his brothers were laughing.

He needed them to understand. After a couple of seconds, he thought "'I'll just think this to him. PERCY, YOU… AND.. BILLY… LET… GO… MY… ARMS… HURT… AND… I… LIKE… GRASS.'" After a moment he added. "'Now… tell… Bill.'"

Both his brothers were in hysterics.

"'Something's funny. What's funny?'" he thought he'd just look at them and see.

He kept trying but it was hard to do with one on one side and one on the other.

"'Percy'" he thought.

His little brother answered him through a laugh, "Yes, can I help you?"

"'You can't stay in my head. There's naughty stuff in there Percy and it's not for little brothers.'" Charlie could swear those words didn't come out just right.

That's when Billy- wait- Billy- Bill…yeah… Bill said to him while still laughing, "I'll make sure that he gets out of your head. Just…more…walking and less… letting… us… drag you."

"'Ok Billy…wait…Billy.. yeah him…or…you Billy.. make sure Percy leaves my head.'" Charlie couldn't seem to fight the sleepy feeling off anymore.

Percy was still laughing. That was good. Percy needs to laugh.

"'Soo tired.'" He thought to himself.

Right before he finally passed out, he heard Billy stop laughing and say "Son of a…, don't you dare pass…"

Charlie wasn't sure who was passing but he kinda felt sorry for them. Billy didn't sound happy anymore. He decided he'd figure it out in the morning.


	5. The Ebb and Flow of Low Tide

**I really don't want anyone to think that there will be a lot of character bashing in this story. There are reasons for every emotion that will be displayed from them. Hopefully, they will all ring true. If you couldn't tell this story will be told from many points of view. That being said, those emotions where one person doesn't agree with someone else's actions or inactions will hopefully come through from both sides. Sometimes someone's right is someone else's wrong no matter how you look at it. I would love and encourage thoughtful insightful reviews. **

** Sorry, no Beta but I'm totally open to pm's that will alert me to mistakes that I need to fix. Thanks to anyone who reads it. V**

**Anything related to HP and its characters has been and always will be the property of JK Rowling.**

**The Ebb and Flow of Low Tide**

His tea was getting cold. The bitter taste staying on his tongue after he set the cup down. To be honest, he didn't want it, but it was made for him, so he'd drink it.

"Harry?"  
"Hmm?" He looked up to see three Weasleys watching him with varying degrees of sadness, worry, and stress on their faces.

"Sorry. What were you saying?" His mind was numb. Looking up at the clock he'd noticed that they'd only been sitting there for about 15 minutes. From what he remembered before he'd zoned out was that the conversation so far hadn't gotten past whether anyone was hungry.

"I was just asking if there was anyone you would like us to get a hold of and any plans that you could think of that George and I could take care of for you." Fred's voice held no contempt or anger in it. For that, he was grateful.

Harry had been happy to see that he'd come to the Burrow with his parents. Since the war, the twins had become more than just joke shop owners in the magical UK. Their business sense, charisma, as well as their charity work, had garnered them strong connections throughout most magical countries across the globe.

With the twins, plus Molly and Arthurs help as well, he felt like it was a good start in the right direction. It was enough to calm his nerves a bit.

He was worried about the conversations he was going to have over the next few days and hoped that he wasn't going to have to fight to get Hermione's decisions respected.

When she'd first started talking about what kind of funeral she wanted, she'd insisted on a short, small simple service for a few friends that included magical rites at the end.

It had been an argument they'd had several times. Harry had repeatedly told her that going back to England with who she was, like it or not, meant the entire magical world find out and would want to pay their respects. She was one part of the Golden Trio. A war hero in her own right. She was the muggle-born witch that was best friends with Harry Potter. She'd fought in a war beside him so that other muggle-borns just like her had rights and didn't have to be afraid or feel ashamed.

Even though she finally relented and acknowledged that going back meant stepping back into the magical public eye, she still insisted on nothing fancy or ornate.

Hermione was a lot of things, but simple wasn't one of them and she didn't live a small life. She'd lived her life in two different worlds at the same time. Touching and changing the lives of too many people throughout the magical world for her goodbye to be small, quiet or even truly simple.

In the end, she'd had to compromise. Two different services would be held. One public and one private. That meant plans had to be made.

"Hermione didn't want to be buried." He watched for their reactions as he began to try and explain. He was so tired and truly didn't want a fight, but he would for her.

"She wants..." his words faltered on the present tense of the word that he'd just used by mistake.

Harry picked up his cup and took a drink of the cold tea trying to focus more on the cold bitter taste than the tears that seemed to want to fall again. "She's to be cremated and if given permission, her ashes to be spread and placed in a couple of different places that were special to her."

He rubbed his eyes quickly to remove the wetness. There wasn't a lot of time to get things ready, so he needed to carry on, "In the morning I'm going to see Minerva." He looked down into the half-empty cup and said, "Hogwarts is where she wants to go. It was home for her." When he looked back up Molly was nodding while wiping away more tears.

"Since Charlie Beth's birth, she'd become more private and cautious. Hermione didn't want a lot of people at her funeral. It took some arguing but she finally agreed to two separate services. She settled on a small personal service for those closest to her, ending it with magical rites at dusk, three days after her passing. Then a simple, classy memorial for the public the following evening." He watched Arthur nod. She'd said that out of everyone he would understand the timeline because of his curiosity about her faith.

"Arthur, she left you something that she wanted you to watch as soon as possible if that's alright."

He knew the older man had been hurt. But Arthur hadn't said much about it and Harry figured he wouldn't until he understood more. That's why Hermione made the tape. He'd always reserved judgement on everything serious till he had most if not all the facts. It was something that Harry himself admired.

"All right. When?"

"First thing when we wake up if that's ok. There's a muggle device called a dvd player. She figured out how to place ruins on so that its batteries are shielded from our magic for a short amount of time. The dvd isn't very long." He truly hoped that Arthur would wait and was beyond relieved to see him nod.

"Of course." Was the answer but Harry could tell that it wasn't one that he wanted to give. Somewhere in the back of his mind he thought that the man actually might ask more questions about the player itself. Rationally he knew that Arthur wouldn't, that it was just him wanting things to be normal. To see the happy inquisitiveness over everything muggle come through the man as it always had.

Turning to Fred he asked, "Could you and George gather the people we'll need for security?"

Fred nodded then asked, "Who do you want us to talk to?"

"Um… Kings, Minerva," Harry's voice trailed off for a moment before he quickly looked over at Arthur, "Did you already get a hold of her?"

"Yes."

"Was anyone else there?"

Arthur shook his head, "No. She was alone. She said she'd call a meeting and let the other's in the castle know in the morning."

"Damn." Glancing over at Molly he said, "Sorry Molly." then continued, "I think it's important that we hold our meeting first before she talks to anyone."

Fred agreed and added, "Once the people and portraits in the castle find out it'll be front-page news for the evening edition of the Prophet and that's if they don't put out a special edition just for her."

His heart rate began to rise. He felt like kicking himself. They needed to keep the news of her death as well as Charlie Beth's existence as quiet as they could till security was tightened and things were more sorted.

There were still pureblood traditionalist and underground death eaters out there that would be thrilled at the news of Hermione's death. Finding out that she had a daughter would make Charlie Beth a target. That much had already been proven once before.

Panic had begun to seep into his voice, "Arthur where was she…"

The man was standing before Harry could continue.

"It was late enough that she was already in her personal chambers when I got a hold of her. It's only been about an hour. With any hope, she went straight to bed."

Harry looked at the woman across the table, "Molly?"

"I've been renewing the blood wards on the Burrow every four months since she was born Harry." She paused for a moment and then added, "If you wanted to, the Burrow would accept your blood now as well, you know."

He nodded ignoring the questioning look that Fred was now giving his mother. "Later, Fred." He heard her tell her son.

"I need to get a hold of…" Harry had started and then stopped when he saw Arthur walk back into the room.

"She was still up reading. Thank Merlin. She said she'd not make the announcement till after the meeting and recommended holding it in the Room of Requirement."

"I agree. I'll need to open it though to set the parameters for the room for what will be needed and who to let in."

That's when Fred asked again, "Who are you going to want there?"

"Minerva, Hagrid, Aberforth, Sirius and Remus, Kingsley. Can you think of anyone else outside of the family Molly?" He'd asked the question as he looked over at her.

"Are you sure Harry?"

He understood her concern, but some somethings were going to have to be explained.

When he nodded, she said, "It'll be important to have the vials and other discs as well then. Other than who you've already said, I can't see anyone else needing to be there."

"George and I can take care of getting a hold of Kingsley, Sirius, Remus, and Aberforth." Fred's offer took quite a bit of pressure off. Even though he would have liked to talk to his godfather first, Harry knew that getting everything done quickly meant that their talk would have to come later.

"Yeah, that'd be great. I'll also need to know which Weasley's will be there as well."

There was silence for a few moments before Fred said. "Ginny won't be there." It was stated as a fact. Not a question or a probability. A fact.

Harry felt his magic pulse. He wasn't going to deal with Ginny and her feelings. This wasn't about her. He simply said. "I didn't expect her to." He could feel his irritation building.

"So, you three and George and Charlie is who's more than likely going to be there."

So that they understood why he stated the names that he did, he added. "I understand why Ron wouldn't. There are circumstances that no one but he, Hermione and I know about. But I'd like him to be asked anyway. I didn't even expect Ginny to be even be asked. She hasn't been a part of Hermione's life in over 4 years, my life in over 2 and she's never been a part of Charlie Beth's."

Both Molly and Fred didn't seem surprised by what he'd said but Arthur's shock was written all over his face.

"That leaves Bill and Percy. With Percy, I have absolutely no clue. Honestly, I barely know him. So, I'm leaving that open to what you all think. But Bill had trouble with me," he nodded toward her "you Molly, Hermione, and her choice to keep her pregnancy quiet. The fact that he couldn't keep his feelings or comments under control while she was in the last hours of her life pissed me the hell off, as the yanks say." He glanced over at Molly again and said, "Sorry Molly."

His anger was steadily rising and couldn't keep the edge out of the tone of his voice, "If there's going to be more problems with him that has anything to do with Hermione or anyone involved, then I need you all to be honest with me now. My temper and magic are too close to the surface right now. You all know me well enough that if I'm pushed too far that I'll act first and ask questions later. I'd rather ban him and anyone else from being anywhere near us and anything having to do with us over the next several days, than end up hurting anyone."

At the startled look on the faces of the two other men at the table, he purposefully tried to make himself take the edge off his voice. It wasn't working all that well. Molly knew she was in no danger, but they didn't. He didn't need them scared, just informed. "Please understand, Arthur, Fred, both of you and George as well as Charlie are safe. The only one that has half an excuse to have a bad temper with me is Charlie and even that's conditional."

He ran both hands through his hair harshly as if somehow it was going to help him come up with the right words. "I know I'm being overprotective, but I also know that right now it would be a very bad idea for Bill or Ginny or anyone, to argue with any of us about anything to do with Hermione and this situation. If they can't be adult enough to control their emotions, then it's best that they stay away. Right now, it's Charlie Beth I'm most worried about. She's just a little girl and doesn't deserve anyone's contempt or anger, she'll not understand it."

His gaze centered on Molly again and said, "You know how she was raised and what she was taught about all of her uncles and aunt. She's knows nothing but love for them and would expect nothing but love back."

He watched her nod as he continued on, "I will not have the anger that was evident earlier happen again. The only reason that I didn't let my own anger go then was that Hermione was still with us and the bug was with her when we all first talked. It will be an extremely bad day for whoever decides to let those feelings show at any time around me now. And as Hermione would put it, Heaven help them if Charlie Beth is anywhere near at the time."

He closed his eyes to calm the anger that he was still building. He needed to somehow let it go. But it seemed like the more he talked the madder he was getting.

It was gone with-in a fraction of a second when he heard Charlie Beth's half-yell half-whisper, "P-pa? Wa-wud y'all d-do?"

When he turned his head and looked over his shoulder, Harry could see her standing on the couch looking over the back of it into the kitchen, watching them. He shook his head, sighed and thought, 'well that was one way to do it.'

Just as he went to push himself up out of the chair, he caught sight Molly squeezing her husband's hand and telling him quietly, "She's asking you what we did to get in trouble." He kept his seat and watched to see what Arthur would do.

The surprise on the man's face at being told that his granddaughter addressed him directly was priceless. His face reddened and his eyes turned glassy as he smiled.

Arthur glanced over at Harry and received a small nod before he pushed himself up from the table.

"Oh, Harry's not upset with us, you see. He just wants to make sure that everyone's ok and that you're safe." He told her as he walked towards the couch.

Arthur's heart ached at the sight of her. It was the first time that he'd seen her face in person. She had his son's dimple and the sun-bleached version of the Weasley red hair. He believed they called it strawberry blonde. Big beautiful brown eyes. Freckles that spread across her nose and cheeks and curly hair that was currently sticking up everywhere. Several curls kept falling forward into her face that she kept pushing back with a tiny little hand. Other than the worry that was evident on her face, she was perfect.

"Would you like to come into the kitchen with us and see?" He thought it might be a little soon for her to trust him to pick her up and carry her but was happily surprised when she'd immediately held her arms up for him. It made his heart soar.

He heard his Molly sniffle as he reached down to take hold of his son's child for the first time. She was such a tiny little thing. As he lifted her across the back of the couch, he noticed one of her shoes was missing.

Holding her legs out so that they could both see her feet, he said, "Well, now, would you look at that. I think you're missing something, aren't you?"

That dimple deepened as she grinned and nodded then said, "Ss-sew kay p-pa. Is d-dow they-air." as she pointed a little finger, complete with a nail that had red sparkly polish on it, towards the floor.

His mind scrambled to decipher what she said. 'It's ok pa. It's down there.' He thought her accent was wonderful. Even though she seemed to have a stutter, the way she spoke was slow and smooth. He did admit to himself that he'd have to pay close attention so that he could try and understand what she was saying. Reminding himself that the simplest answer would probably be the correct one.

"Did you want to get down to go get it before we go in back into the kitchen? Are your toes cold?"

She shook her head, curls flying everywhere, then stuck her foot out to wiggle her sock cover toes. "N-no…they-they-air nn-nah. I ge-di layder."

He nodded. That he understood without having to try and figure it out.

After the shoe was deemed unnecessary, worry marred her features again as she asked, "Mm-my Airs nn-nah m-mad?"

"No. He's just worried." He told her as he reached down to grab the blanket to take with them to the kitchen. He knew she had come from the south in the United States. Molly had explained that it was MUCH hotter there. So, it wouldn't take long for her to get cold.

"B-bout mm-my Un-uncle Be-ill?"

He had just been about to walk back towards the kitchen but instead had leaned back against the couch. He knew that they could hear everything that they were saying but he wanted to know what she'd heard and didn't know if she'd continue talking in front of everyone. "A little. Do you know why?"

She stared at him for a moment before she answered, "Be-ca-cause Un-uncle Be-ill is mm-mad a-at..at m-my G-gainny, an…an m-my Air, an…an mm-my ma-Mom-Momma, an...an m-me."

"Oh, no-no. Bill was never mad at you sweetheart." he tried to explain, "He just doesn't understand why we haven't been told about you till now."

"Cause-cause the-them b-bad mm-men hur m-my mmm-momma an…an m-me."

Arthur's eyes shot into the kitchen to see Fred's startled look, that Harry's whole body had went ridged and that Molly was staring at him and Charlie Beth with a look he couldn't decipher.

Noticing that his own body had also tensed up, he made himself relax and loosen the tighter hold he'd taken of her. "Yes, he doesn't know about that yet."

"An…an…an he..he'ill nn-nah b-be m-mad an-anymo whe-when he kno-knows?" Her concern over the entire thing melted his heart and angered him at the same time. 'What had happened?' His mind asked the question that he knew wasn't going to be answered that night.

"No, sweetheart. Bill won't be mad anymore."

That seemed to ease her a bit but the crease between her eyebrows remained "P-pa?"

"Yes?"

"Yy-you nn-nah mmm-mad e-eve-er?"

She was terribly smart. It's something that he hadn't given much thought to before, but with who her parents were it shouldn't have been a surprise. Yes, his heart was hurt but right then he didn't care that it was his first time meeting his granddaughter. He should have trusted that Molly wouldn't have kept it from him if there wasn't a very good reason. He smiled a bit at her and said, "No Charlie Beth. I'm definitely not mad either."

"kay," she whispered and rubbed her eyes with the back of her hands, just like his own kids used to do when they were tired. Realizing that there was a chance that she'd go back to sleep, that she'd just needed reassurance that everyone was ok, he asked quietly, "How about Pa sits on the couch with you and I'll tell you a story about when your own daddy was little?"

Her eyes lit up and she nodded.

He walked around and sat down and let Charlie Beth get comfortable in his lap. "Now," he started, "when your daddy was about your age, he used to love to find all kinds of animals and bring them home. We'd find them all over the place. In the bathroom, in a kitchen cupboard, in his closet, but his favorite place…" That's when his memory of finding a squirrel in his sock drawer became a bedtime story. It also happened to be one of his favorite memories of Charlie as a little one.

In the kitchen, Molly quietly asked, "Are you alright?"

Fred watched as the boy-who-lived struggle but finally answer, "No. But I knew that I was going to have to explain about that tomorrow anyway."

"Everything?"

"I didn't regret my actions then and I don't regret the actions that I took at that time, now. I'd do it a thousand times over."

Molly nodded and thought 'If there's one thing my family is, especially Charlie Beth, it's loved and protected.'

She could see that Fred had already connected some of the dots before he said, "Ok, so George and I will get Kingsley, Sirius, Remus, and Aberforth. When and where do you want us to meet you?" She was so proud of him right then. Her boys truly were perceptive and knew when to help re-direct the tone of things. 'I really need to remember to tell them that more' Molly thought as she watched one of her twins put the conversation back on topic.

Harry's body visibly relaxed at the change in conversation.

"Tell Kingsley that I asked you to tell him that she's gone and to bring the paperwork. Don't use her name. He'll understand. If you could, get them all to meet up at Aberforths, I'll have Minnie open a floo at the castle for you all to come through. Hopefully, it'll be no later than noon tomorrow but definitely no earlier than 11. If it turns out that it's going to be later, I'll get word to you as soon as I can. I know that this will put your and George's shop along with Abs pub out of business for part of the day. Sorry about that."

"I'll just let Kingsley know that you're not worried about his whole job at the ministry, shall I? He's probably got tons of time on his hands. I'm sure anyone could take over being Minister of Magic and all that."

Ignoring Molly's scoff and Harry's fake glare that was ruined by his grin, Fred continued, "Oook on to next subject, with Hermione's whole SPEW stance, I'm willing to bet we're not using the house-elves at the school for food and drink. So, catering it will have to be. I'm not going to estimate for the funeral till I get the guest list. For the memorial, a decent starting estimate would be at least 350 guests. We can go ahead and get the initial ordering done and change it when there's a final count. Champagne for a toa…"

Harry's smile grew as he shook his head, "No, definitely no champagne. For drinks, I know on her list is muggle Soda, tea, Butterbeer, and wine.

At Fred's incredulous look he explained, "I promised her that it wouldn't be over the top. Nothing too ornate or fancy." Shrugging he added, "She said that she wanted everyone comfortable. Remember it needs to be 'simple and classy'. Oh and no spirits either. I told her that Sirius and Remus were going to veto that, but she said that she was happy to set my mind at ease because they didn't have a vote anyway."

Molly outright laughed as Fred gave him a grin before he said, "Well, I agree with her on the Champaign. Overindulge just a little in that stuff and you feel like someone's hit you in the side of the head with a bludger for half the next day. Besides nothing says classy like muggle soda and Butterbeer."

Harry had to chuckle at that.

"Not that it matters but with beverages like the ones she wants I think the estimated cost has dropped considerably. We'll need to know what she'd had in mind food-wise as well."

Harry nodded and stifled a yawn as he tried to remember what she had put on the list as far as food went. Or if she had put any food on the list at all for that matter.

Before he could say anything, Molly who had been quiet said, "Harry you need to get some rest."

"There are too many things that I need to get done."

She smiled gently at him then said, "You've got a lot of family here to help you now. Not to mention that many other people are going to offer as well. Everything will get taken care of son."

For the first time that night, Harry took a good look at her. Molly herself looked exhausted. He knew she'd probably been up just as long as he had if not longer. But there was just so much to do.

He sat there for a minute trying to get his thoughts sorted out.

Fred glanced over at his Mom then back to him and said, "Look mate, I think maybe we should continue in the morning."

He nodded, finally admitting defeat. "Yeah, all right."

Harry looked back over his shoulder into the living room. Arthur's head was now leaning back against the couch as he softly snored. He smiled and thought, 'She probably put _him_ to sleep.' But said out loud, "Besides bug will be up in a little while and I really want to be awake before then. She can be a bit of a handful."

A curious look crossed Fred's face, "Bug? Like as in an insect?"

"Yeah, short for Ladybug. That's what they call them in the States. Those little red bugs with black spots on them. I guess we call them Ladybirds. They're quite pretty actually." Harry rattled the last part off without thinking about who he was talking to.

"Quite pretty, huh?" The playful tone in Fred's voice had Harry's face heating up before he chuckled at himself.

Rubbing his hands over his face, he sat back in his chair and tried to bribe one-half of the Weasley twins. "I'm too tired for this. Look I'll give you 1000 galleons to keep this quiet for the next three weeks."

Molly looked shocked and then asked, "Why only three weeks?"

"Have you ever known one twin to keep a secret from the other twin for very long?" He explained, "I'm taking a chance at three weeks."

As she stood to gather the cups and take them to the sink, Molly said to him, "If it weren't illegal, for a thousand galleons, I'd obliviate him for you."

"Oi! Your son here! Remember Mother of mine!?" Fred had sat up straight and leaned forward suspiciously watching her as Molly walked behind him over to the sink.

The look of true shock that morphed into mock outrage on Fred's face when his mom said "Yes, George, I remember that you're one of my sons." was hilarious. It was often wondered where the twins got their deadpan sense of humor from. Not many knew because Molly didn't let herself joke in front of people outside of the family.

As he laughed Harry couldn't help but feel the love that he had for the Weasleys. They could turn what was a worsening situation on an already terrible night into something that was a bit better by joking and bantering back and forth good-naturedly by the end of it.

He yawned threw his smile as he stood and then said. "Whether I'm down a thousand galleons or not, I'm headed for bed." Then added, "Molly if you decide to skirt the law let me know and I'll get you the money instead."

He could hear Molly's quiet laughter and Fred's indignant sputtering all the way over to the couch.


	6. Sitting Outside Listening In

**Everything HP is the property of JK Rowling. I'm just playing in her playground. **

**Sitting ****Outside Listening In**

Standing outside his parent's house holding up his drunken passed out brother with the help of one of his other brothers, Bill was faced with an issue of what to do next. He could hear his parents, Fred and Harry talking and didn't want to have anything to do with the conversation that they were having.

Yet, he needed to get Charlie to bed or as close to one as he could get. He figured that they'd throw him on the couch. It was an understanding between the three of them. Whoever passes out first gets the couch or the floor because none of them wanted the wrath of their mother if she caught them sneaking up the stairs drunk. And any of them sleeping it off in the middle of the pitch was definitely not something that was going to happen again. Their mum had made the three of them do all their chores, including cleaning out the chicken coop by hand the Muggle way. He felt the worst for Percy at that time. He hadn't even gotten drunk; he'd just hung out with them while they drank. His mum's reaction to finding out that Percy had remained sober was that he should have had enough sense to get the other two into the house at least. Hence, his little brother's earlier panic about staying out on the pitch.

It wasn't lost on him that they all still held on to that fear even though they were now grown men. They learned a very valuable lesson that day. Don't piss off your mum.

So, they stood there on the porch for a few minutes while whispering back and forth about what possibilities they had and between the two of them.

They could come up with absolutely nothing.

Apparating was out of the question. Doing it after a couple of butterbeers or a firewhiskey was one thing, doing it after drinking muggle whiskey was not a good idea at all. It was stronger and you had a lot less control. Walking anywhere meant dragging a passed out Charlie more than two miles in any direction before they could even call for the knight bus. A patronis was not going to happen for two separate reasons. One, both he and Percy were too drunk to focus on anything happy enough for long enough to conjure one. Two, the bright light a patronis would give off would most certainly call attention to them.

In the end, they did the only thing that they could at that point. He and Percy sat Charlie on the porch leaning him up against the wall then sat down beside him until they could go inside safely. It was late. Surely everyone inside wouldn't be up that much longer.

They had just gotten Charlie placed where he wouldn't tip over when they heard...

"Jenny won't be there."

Bill looked over at his brother Percy to see his eyebrows furrow at the subject matter. Not to mention the tone of voice Fred used. It wasn't angry or even irritated. He just sounded resigned, almost sad.

"I didn't expect her to." Was the boy who lived's clipped answer.

Harry's whole demeanor today ticked him off. Bill wasn't sure that it was a good idea anymore to be out here listening.

"So, you three and George and Charlie is who's more than likely going to be there ."

He then watched Percy tip his head to the side, probably wondering where their invitations to whatever party they were going to throw went.

He guessed that the other occupants stuck at the table had the same confused look as both he and his younger brother did when Harry continued with, "I understand why Ron wouldn't. There are circumstances that no one but he, Hermione and I know about. But I'd like him to be asked anyway. I didn't expect Ginny to be even be asked. She hasn't been a part of Hermione's life in over 4 years, my life in over 2 and she's never been a part of Charlie Beth's."

Percy had been staring down at the warn paint on the porch, but when this was said his head snapped up to look at Bill questioningly.

The problem was that this was news to Bill as well. He'd been under the impression that his baby sister and Harry had been seeing each other until last year when she moved out. It was widely known that Harry put most of his time in his work. Now Bill was wondering how much of that work was actually Hermione. He didn't want to think about it like that but the proof was pretty overwhelming. It just served to make him more upset at the entire situation.

"That leaves Bill and Percy. With Percy, I have absolutely no clue. Honestly, I barely know him. So, I'm leaving that open to what you all think." He watched Perce nod like he wouldn't have expected anything else. To be honest, it was the truth and leaving it up to the family was probably the right thing to do.

"But Bill had trouble with me, you Molly, Hermione, and her choice to keep her pregnancy quiet. The fact that he couldn't keep his feelings or comments under control while she was in the last hours of her life pissed me the hell off. Sorry, Molly."

Hearing it put like that made him feel like a total prat. He wasn't ashamed of how he felt or what he said but because he was a grown man and should have had the tact to vent what he was feeling at a different time and place. Definitely not as someone was on their death bed.

He couldn't help the jump he gave at the sound of Harry's voice when he started speaking again. He felt a little better about it knowing that Percy had the same reaction.

"If there's going to be more problems with him that has anything to do with Hermione or anyone involved, then I need you all to be honest with me now. My temper and magic are too close to the surface right now. You all know me well enough that if I'm pushed too far that I'll act first and ask questions later. I'd rather ban him and anyone else from being anywhere near us and anything having to do with us over the next several days, than end up hurting anyone."

The two men shared a startled look at the tone of Harry's voice. It didn't skip his notice that both he and Percy had become hyper-alert at that point. Harry was harmless to his family. In fact, he knew that the man would die for all of them but there were times that it didn't stop them from being a bit cautious around him.

"Please understand, Arthur, Fred, both of you and George as well as Charlie are safe. The only one that has half an excuse to have a bad temper with me is Charlie and even that's conditional."

Glancing over at a still passed out Charlie, Bill had to wonder about the whole damn thing. Charlie's decision that night didn't make much sense either. It was all frustrating.

"I know I'm being overprotective, but I also know that right now it would be a very bad idea for Bill or Ginny or anyone, to argue with any of us about anything to do with Hermione and this situation. If they can't be adult enough to control their emotions, then it's best that they stay away. Right now, it's Charlie Beth I'm most worried about. She's just a little girl and doesn't deserve anyone's contempt or anger, she'll not understand it."

The feeling of frustration took a back seat to the myriad of feelings that he was now trying to sort out. Fear. Shame. Irritation. But beyond all that sadness. Especially for Charlie Beth. When it had happened, Harry had stood and quietly asked him to stop or leave. It seemed now Harry's anger about what had happened had caught up to them. The protectiveness around Charlie Beth was like a solid wall in his words.

Not that he blamed him. The little girl was in the middle of the biggest cock-up that his family had been involved with in a long time. And she was the only completely innocent one in it. That crappy feeling of shame made it's way back to him. He couldn't even blame the moon as an excuse for his words and behavior.

"You know how she was raised and what she was taught about all of her uncles and aunt. She's knows nothing but love for them and would expect nothing but love back."

Bill really wanted to know the child. She looked so little and spoke with a stutter. He couldn't help but wonder if it had something to do with her mother's injuries during the war or if she was just one of those children that was in such a hurry getting her words out they got tangled before they left her mouth. Not many knew it but Ginny stuttered a bit when she was little. She seemed to always be trying to play catch up with her brothers.

Although he knew that the man was getting more upset, he didn't jump this time when Harry continued. At this point, he really couldn't blame him. He'd been a prick.

"I will not have the anger that was evident earlier happen again. The only reason that I didn't let my own anger go then was that Hermione was still with us and the bug was with her when we all first talked. It will be an extremely bad day for whoever decides to let those feelings show at any time around me now. And as Hermione would put it, Heaven help them if Charlie Beth is anywhere near at the time."

It wasn't a threat. It wasn't a promise.

It was a fact.

He watched Percy shiver as he tried to push down the chill trying to run down his spine as well.

Bill knew that right then it didn't matter how he felt about the situation. Many things were going to take place in the next few days and although he didn't like what had happened, he knew that if he didn't back off it was going to end badly, whether Harry was directly involved in the argument or not. 9 times out of 10 Harry was completely harmless unless it came to what he considered his family. That consisted of Hermione, Sirius, Remus, and the Weasleys.

But when it came to Hermione, his youngest brother and now Charlie Beth everyone was in danger if they hurt them.

The problem was this entire mess of things had Charlie, Hermione and their child in the center of it.

And Harry knew that he is was going to be touchy even with family arguing about it.

Bill sighed and leaned his head back closing his eyes.

Looking at it like that, he had to admit that it put Harry in an awkward place. Bill knew without a shadow of a doubt that Harry would cut anyone out of his and the little girls' life if it meant keeping her from getting hurt. Even if it were accidental.

Now he just had to figure out if he was going to be able to get through all this without losing it himself and being banned for good.

He never thought he'd be able to but there were time's now that Bill could say that he hated his ex-wife to the core.

He suddenly felt drained. Too drained to listen anymore. He wanted sleep. Just to lay down, close his eyes for a while and not think about things.

He opened his eyes and looked around considering the pitch again until he remembered his dad's old car. Tapping Percy on the knee to get his attention he whispered, "Come-on. Let's go out to the shed. We can get in dad's car and sleep."

Standing up he grabbed one of Charlie's arms and waited for his little brother to grab the other before he hauled him up and started off towards the back of the house.


	7. Painful Blessings

**Painful Blessings**

She'd wanted nothing more than for her family to be together. No secrets. Complete. But not like this. There was so much pain within her family tonight. And in all honesty, it wasn't complete. Not without Hermione. That startling fact hit her hard.

Staring at the wall listening to her husband's deep breathing Molly thought about the prices that had been paid for and by her family over her lifetime. They were too high, but she knew her family would repeatedly pay the prices over and over if need be to make sure that the future was better than the past.

Which left her feeling more guilty than ever.

The war had been going on and off for most her life and she'd prayed to Merlin every day that it would be over with fast. Of course, after the first one ended, she'd wished that she could go back before it had ever happened to try and change something. Anything to bring her brothers back.

After the second where Harry had ended everything for good, things were different. Now she wouldn't go back and change things. For anything. As terrible as it was for her to come to that conclusion, it was a truth that she couldn't ignore. And it was heartbreaking to her. She'd lost so much to the tragedy of the wars. Yet, they had also brought so many beautiful things in their wakes.

The familiar aching feeling deep in her chest was weighing especially heavy that night.

Letting out a deep sigh she rolled over onto her back and reached for her husband's hand under the covers. Just like always, he never stirred except to wrap his large hand around hers and pull her closer to him. She'd been blessed with a man that loved her beyond life itself. But for some reason the action that she'd used to comfort herself with for a little more than 30 years, only made the ache seem a little deeper that night.

She just wanted to fall asleep and leave this day behind. Start fresh in the morning. This day was supposed to be done and yet here she lay, with thoughts that didn't need to be thought about keeping her awake.

Once his grip loosened again she rolled back over onto her back and sighed. Then she reached up to the chain that lay around her neck and pulled out the locket that lay against her skin. Opening it she watched the two men on the left smile and wave at her by moonlight, while the other side held a still picture of a mother and daughter.

Her eyes felt like sandpaper as she traced the outline of the faces of the females. They were so similar to each other and still couldn't be more different. The little girl sitting on her mother's lap was a perfect combination of the two people that made her.

She was a beautiful blessing. Watching her grow had been a gift. And although the deceit attached to it tore at her heart, it was a gift that she was grateful for daily.

Not only for the child but her mother as well.

Hermione had become much more to her than just the mother to her granddaughter. She'd become a close friend. Her only one to be honest. Molly had never allowed herself to have friends. She was a devoted housewife and mother. She'd always put her family ahead of herself, which was what was taught to her from a young age. Somehow though, her daughter of the heart taught her that she wasn't letting anyone down or hurting them if she took a bit of time for herself now and then. That it was good for her and everyone around her as well.

A smile graced her lips as she thought about the first time that Hermione had wanted her to go get a manicure and pedicure with her. She went with her but didn't let anyone touch her at first. Instead, she sat and watched as the girl fussed over Hermione's nails. Gently chastising her for biting the skin around them.

The girl didn't push Molly, just asked a couple of times if she'd like one as well as she watched the process. In the end, Molly had let the same girl clip and file her nails then massage a thick sweet, smelling lotion her hands. It was wonderful. Years of working in the kitchen, around the house and the garden had left her hands stiff with tough calluses in places.

By the time they left, she was almost afraid to touch anything. Worrying that it might damage all the work that the girl had gone to making her hands soft and beautiful. Hermione had smiled and told her not to worry, that it was the girls' job and that she'd be happy to have repeat customers. When Molly had protested that it wasn't something that she could do again, Hermione told her that it would help her as well. That going to have it done would make her feel better about herself becoming as large as a whale in the months to come. Molly had assured her that she wouldn't look like one of the large animals that they'd showed her at the aquarium that she and Harry had taken Molly to a few weeks earlier. But that she did know how it felt to have her body stretched out of place to the point of not being able to see her own feet. She'd laughed at the look of horror on Hermione's face, patting her on the hand and telling her that they'd get her some slip-on shoes.

So, it became a regular appointment for them both. Whenever she could go there for the day, they'd go down to the local muggle shopping mall and get their nails done.

She was going to miss her friend terribly.

Molly closed the locket when she heard the sounds of her oldest boys coming up the stairs. She rolled her eyes when she heard Bill tell his brother's, 'Sshh. Quiet or we'll be cleaning the coop again by hand.'

A glance at the window told her that dawn was a few hours away at most. She didn't even want to try and imagine where they had been or what they had been up to. There were too many different scenarios and none of them were good.

After taking a deep breath she rolled, curled herself up against her husband and tried to go to sleep once again. The thought of how much she was going to miss Hermione still sat in her mind when she finally dozed off for a few hours.


	8. Arthurs DVD

**Everything HP is JK Rowlings. **

**Arthurs DVD**

When Arthur opened his eyes that morning it was to the sounds of little feet quickly pitter-pattering their way down the hallway. He almost jumped out of bed to go chase the little one down before she got to the top of the stairwell but breathed a sigh of relief when he heard Harry catch up to her. He smiled at the giggle she let out when Harry had obviously grabbed her while whispering at the same time, "Oh no you don't."

He'd decided to go ahead and get out of bed and start getting ready for the day. Molly was already up and probably starting breakfast. He'd wanted to have a few words with her about the previous night before anyone else was around so he hurried to get done. But as soon as he'd wandered into the kitchen Harry had pulled him aside and asked if he would go ahead and watch the dvd thing that Hermione had made him. After a brief discussion about who was and wasn't going to watch it right then, he took a cup of tea and followed the man back to his and Molly's bedroom.

He had to admit that he was filled with a thousand questions about the little device in front of him on the bed. It was black and looked like an inch-thick piece of plastic that flipped open like a piece of parchment that had been folded in half. Once opened the top part looked like a tiny muggle tv screen but the piece that stuck out on the bottom had several buttons on it. Some with words like play, stop, resume and some with just arrows pointing left and right. The entire thing was no longer or wider than a 12-inch piece of parchment paper.

Harry had explained that Hermione had already placed the dvd into the player and that all he had to do was push the button that said play and that Hermione's image would come on but he wouldn't be able to speak to it like a magical portrait. That it was like a combination of a letter and a pensive memory directed just to him. After he finished explaining how to work it Harry told him that he'd be with Charlie Beth in the room that they had slept in and asked that he come get them when he was done.

Arthur had sat there for a few minutes debating on whether to go and get Molly and Harry and insist that they be in there with him. But Harry had been adamant that Hermione wanted him to watch it by himself first. Molly had kissed him on his cheek and said it would be fine. When he asked Harry if he could just tell him what was on it, he'd said that Hermione had asked him not to look at it until Arthur had viewed it first and then only if Harry or anyone else had Arthurs permission could they see it. That made him rather nervous. But his Molly seemed to think it would turn out fine so he would trust in that as well.

Taking a deep breath, he reached over and pressed the play button.

The room was quiet as the picture on the small screen came to life.

Then there she was. Face gaunt, skin that was tinged somehow both grey and pink, what once was her thick curly hair was at that point very thin and pulled back in a braid, her body shrunken to the point of extreme emaciation.

She cleared her throat and grabbed some papers from the table that was in front of her. "Ok…um this is harder than I thought it would be." She mumbled as he watched her face heat up even more.

Then after taking a deep breath, she looked directly at the camera. Her eyes were soft and sad as she said, "Hi... I ..uh..I'm not sure how well this will turn out, but I'm going to try to get through this as best I can. I haven't told Harry that I was making this because I wanted you to watch it first and then make the decision to let people know what's on it. I know he'd never watch it without permission, but I also didn't want him nagging me about what was on it. So, I'll..um.. give it to him so that he can pass it on to you right after I….um…"

He watched as she looked down as some papers in front of her, then blew out an exaggerated breath, rolled her eyes at herself and set them aside.

"Right." She sat still for a few seconds before looking down again for a moment, then after pulling her gaze back up slowly, she said, "I think… before asking my favor, I need to say this…. Please… don't let this come between you and Molly. I gave her two choices and I think, at least, I hope you would have made the same one that she did, had they been given to you instead." A look of guilt now mingled with sadness as she went on.

"Her choices were that she could be in our lives but she had to take an unbreakable vow of silence regarding my pregnancy, my baby and myself until I died or I gave permission for her to speak about us or I would modify her memory of that day. Everything about myself that day and my pregnancy would be erased." True grief laced her words as she went on. "Although I don't regret giving the ultimatum, I need you to know that it wasn't an easy decision for her. She worried over it and right after she took the vow, I remember her words so clearly… 'I hope he forgives me'."

Her eyes were shiny with tears that were threatening to fall. "I know you probably hate me… for making her make the choice that she did. However, I won't lie. I'm so grateful that she did choose to make the vow. I don't know what I would have done without her. Along with Harry, Molly's been my saving grace more times than I can count."

'Mine too' Arthur thought to himself.

A small smile slipped over her face before she said, "There are a couple of small silver vials of memories for you of Molly and Charlie Beth together. I think you'll understand once you see them why I think they are so important for you to have."

She wiped her eyes and nose with a tissue before adding, "I also want to thank you. For all the kindness and caring… and help that you've given me as I was growing up. You welcomed me into your home almost every summer without a second thought. I mean…. you made me feel like I was supposed to be there. That it was where I belonged. I guess in many ways, you and your family accepted me more than my own had as I got older…and I need you to know that I am so proud that my daughter has your family's blood running through her and that she carries the Weasley name as part of who she is. Please, Sir, don't ever question that."

She wiped at her eyes again and then cleared her throat. "I guess I need to explain a little. Not long after I was told that I was pregnant, I overheard some people talking that were not exactly fans of mine. I was already using glamour's daily and so they didn't recognize me. But it was surprising to me because I was so far away from England. I guess rumors were being spread around about my leaving England because of everything from heartbreak to running from the Ministery and they'd made their way through different newspapers and eventually different countries. It seemed that I was on the wrong end of gossip fodder again. I know I really shouldn't have been surprised. But I was all the same. Anyway, that's when I knew that it was something that I would have to keep up even after my baby was born for a while. I didn't want my child's first memories to be of constant scrutiny and even anger from people because of made-up newspaper articles about me that the general public would choose to believe. Memories of my fourth year and the press surrounding the Tri-Wizard tournament terrified me. The responses to the articles from the public that year were not only vile and verbally cruel they could have ended up killing me with some of the things that were sent to me in the mail. I was lucky that it was only Bubotuber pus that burnt my hands before I stopped opening my mail that year."

Arthur let out a deep sigh remembering his wife's reaction to the articles being printed as well. It was something that the two of them fought over after he found out about her attitude towards Hermione when she and Bill went to support Harry in the tournament. He shook his head and turned his attention back to what Hermione was saying.

"...I needed to shield my baby from it all. She needed to be protected from the fact that her mother was Hermione Granger. I knew that I couldn't do it forever so, initially, I had planned to lift the vow after Bug had her first birthday…. But ….then some things happened that made that impossible and it became more important for us to remain anonymous until she was old enough to understand things better. Again, I'm not sure why it didn't occur to me at the time that there might be people out there that still wanted to harm me because of my blood status, so I guess I'm kind of thankful that I overheard people spreading gossip when I first got pregnant."

He watched her look off to the side, staring at something he couldn't see off-screen. She seemed to be trying to work her thoughts out as she spoke, "I think …I think I just wanted everything to be too different too fast. Gossip I could handle because it was always going to happen and could be dealt with. I didn't want to believe that who I was born to would matter anymore because we won the war… right?... I guess I'd gotten foolish….careless."

She seemed to come back to herself and looked into the camera with a bit of a smile, "So much for constant vigilance, right? Mad-Eye would be furious." Arthur nodded in agreement while letting out a small chuckle.

"Anyway, Charlie Beth was almost 2 when I became ill and was diagnosed. As I got sicker it was even more important to me to keep our identities private. I wanted her to know love and laughter without worrying about what's over her shoulder. I wanted her to be a little girl without the worries that adults would put on her if they found out about her. At the same time, I knew that I couldn't shield her from the evil that was going to be at her doorstep as she grew older. I thought I would have more time but it wasn't very long after my first few magical treatments that I knew I wouldn't be getting any better. So, I decided to prepare her as much as I could before I died. I thought the best thing that I could do was teach her who I trust and love. Then she could also see how I react to people outside the ones that I taught her about. That way I could control ….how and what was explained to her. Even though Charlie Beth still is very young, over a year ago when I started trying to explain bits and pieces, she was even littler…younger…. It was difficult to balance making sure to let her be a happy little girl while also letting her learn to not trust just anyone. She knows it even though she still doesn't understand it much yet. I tried to teach her as much about everyone that I love and trust there. She understands that Harry, your family, Sirius and Remus are family and they're safe, but that she shouldn't be afraid of Professors' McGonagal and Snape and Minister Kingsley. Other than the ones that I've directly tried to teach her about I'm not sure if she picked up on anyone else. Either from stories or listening to Harry, Molly and I talk. To be honest, I'm fine if she didn't. I wish I had more time, that I could teach her more…..Anyway, I know that I _don't_ have much longer now. Honestly, as scared as I am, I think it will be a relief. I'm so tired anymore."

The literal pain in her voice cut through the room and into him as she continued "But I have some things that must be taken care of before I can go. I know that it's asking a lot…too much… but honestly, you're the only person that I trust with this. You know my background, my beliefs, my upbringing. Sir, I'd like it if you were the one to perform the magical rites over me. I mean, I completely understand if you just can't." she got out quickly before she added, "but I hope that maybe you'll consider it."

"Either way, it'll be ok. It's the reason why I left this for you to watch first… And you have every right to refuse….I want you to know that I understand… but if you find that you can't, then don let anyone else see this. At least, not right away. People get irrational when something upsetting is happening. They don't think straight and take into consideration how other people might feel. OH!..and please help Harry with the arrangements for another to do the rites if you can't. I know that I've told him a hundred times what to do and where to go but I don't think he's heard any of it."

"I love you and your family, Mr. Weasley. I may not truly be part of it, but it doesn't make my feelings for you all any less true. You've always made me_ feel_ part of it. Loved and cared for... Thank you so very much for that… And…well... I hope one day that you'll be able to forgive me…. Please... forgive me."

He watched as she quickly wiped away the tears that were now rolling down her face right before she reached to shut the camera off.

"There's nothing to forgive daughter." He whispered as the screen went black.


	9. By Scent

**Everything HP is solely JK Rowlings**

However, I'll be taking a bit of creative licensing with the patronus's of Molly, Bill, Charlie, and Percy. Theirs are the only ones that aren't named.

** By Scent**

Harry's first thought when he opened his eyes that morning was the same one that it had been for the last 3 years. 'I need to check on Mione and the Bug.' Whether it had been by firecall or listening for their sounds in the house it was always the same.

Then it all came crashing down on him.

Even as his eyes tried focusing on the ceiling of Ron's old bedroom everything else in him was screaming in denial. She wasn't gone. She couldn't be.

He wanted it to just be one of those times that he was back in England for his job.

He wanted to go to the IPO leave and wake up back in the states listening to Hermione and Charlie Beth as they made their way through the house trying to be quiet. Which meant Hermione whispering to her daughter that she and Charlie Beth had to be very quiet because Bugs Air got in late and was asleep. To which Charlie Beth, who still hasn't quite grasped the complete concept of whispering yet, would inevitably half-whisper half-yell a stuttered 'Ok momma'. He had decided at some point it was probably the best sound in the world to wake up to. Then Harry had usually laid there for another ten to fifteen minutes before getting himself up and going to find out what they were up to. He wanted that reality back again.

He swallowed, wiped his eyes and put his memories and wants aside. Then looked over to make sure that Charlie Beth was still asleep. The problem was that she was no longer on her bed.

He sat up and his eyes darted around the room. When he spotted her sitting on the floor playing with her animals, he let out a deep breath. She looked up at him and said, "Ha-I mm-my Air."

He noticed as he slipped from the bed onto the floor beside her that she hadn't dressed herself that morning. It wasn't unusual except that she had wanted to more often than not over the last year and a half and if she had the chance to pick out her own clothes, she took it.

Usually, Hermione let her wear what she chose for herself unless it was something completely inappropriate for one reason or another. Such as wanting to wear only a blue rubber raincoat with ducks on it and yellow trainers to church. Granted she'd matched the yellows of the ducks and the yellow of her trainers, it was still not something that Hemione allowed.

Harry picked her up and set her in his lap as he placed a kiss on the top of her head.

"Good morning my Bug. Are we not dressing ourselves this morning?"

She was using a little pink plastic brush to comb out the thick black fur of her grim, Snuffy.

"Or did Snuffy need his hair combed first?"

Her little head nodded but she still didn't say anything else. That wasn't too unusual for her either. The first thing in the mornings and late nights were always the hardest times for her to get her words out.

He examined the shaggy dog that now looked a little like it had been electrocuted with a smile and said, "I think he's done, don't you?"

She shook her head and fingered the one leg where the fur was still laying down. "Alright then. You finish combing Snuffy and I'll go see what I can find for us to wear. Yeah?"

As she nodded, he kissed the top of her head again and placed her back on the floor.

Harry knew he had to be quick about getting their clothes ready because it wouldn't be long before she was up and into something. His Bug was a bit of an enigma. At any point in time, she could either be running around, playing and chattering or very calm and silent. It was the calm and silent times that you had to watch out for. They were a prelude to two events. Her finding a place she felt safe and comfortable in then falling asleep or it was just before she was up and doing something that almost always landed her in trouble. It was terrifying to look up and see her one minute and then her be gone the next.

At first, it worried them that she could be playing and then just stop in the middle of whatever she was doing, find somewhere to lay down and go to sleep. But the doctors said that she was fine. That Charlie Beth knew when her body needed rest and it was a good thing when she did it. Effectively she was putting herself down for several short naps a day. It wasn't exactly normal, but neither was Bug.

When Hermione told Charlie Beth's doctors about the two options after being calm and silent, they'd laughed and told her that her daughter was exceptionally smart and that she'd have to be extra vigilant during those times.

Hence Harry quickly sorting through her clothing in their bags trying to decide what to put on her. Just as he'd grabbed a red striped shirt with ruffles on the edge of the sleeves, he heard the door to the room squeak open. He didn't even stop to look and see what she was doing. Harry just dropped the shirt and took off after the little escapee.

He shook his head and smiled as he half-jogged down the hall after her. She was moving as fast as her little feet and long flannel nightgown would let her go. About 3 feet from the top of the stairs he grabbed her up in his arms and said, "Oh no you don't!" then turned and walked back to the bedroom, while she giggled.

Once inside the room, he sat her down and asked, "Are you ready to get dressed now?"

She shook her head and walked over and sat down with her animals again. Harry sighed, he knew what it meant. It was going to be a more difficult day for her as well.

He walked over and sat down beside her again. "Bug?"

When she looked up at him, he could see that she was confused, scared and struggling.

"Come here." He whispered and held his arms out to her.

She crawled over and climbed into his lap and curled up into a ball that he wrapped his arms around. As she sniffled he said, "I know Bug. I miss her too." and started rocking her back and forth.

They sat there like that for a little while, then he sighed and leaned back so that he could see her. When she looked up at him again what was left of his heart cracked. All he wanted to do was take her fear and hurt away. But he couldn't and as heartless as it seemed he knew that right then they needed to start getting ready for the day.

"Charlie Beth, do you remember what you're Mum had said about us having a lot of work to do after she went to go take care of Nana and Ongspaw?"

She didn't nod or shake her head. He knew she didn't want to hear any of it, but he had no choice right then. "Remember Bug? Because she said so?"

He tried using the words that she'd said to him the night before to see if he could get her to respond. He felt a tiny bit of relief when she nodded. But his heart broke all over again as she struggled with her words when she actually whispered, "Mmm-my-my… maa-momma sss-ssaid… we ha-ha-haave t-to.. ged-d tha… ssst-stuff d-dun. Ann...mmm-myy Aair…wee-ill ne-nee mm-myy helll-p." It wasn't often this bad but the last few days she'd been upset more and gotten a lot less rest than she normally did. In those last few days before she died Hermione kept Charlie Beth with her at all times. Letting her sleep or stay up with her as wanted to. She knew that they both needed the extra time together.

So, he patiently waited for her to finish before he nodded and said, "That's right. I am going to need you to help me. We have some important things to get done. A lot of them. So, how about right now you go pick out what you want to wear and your shoes, and I'll take the dvd player over to Pa quickly? I think I heard him get up when we walked by his room."

When she just looked at him for a few moments he added, "You remember that their room is just across the hall from us? You passed right by their door when you ran out of the room. I'll be right back, promise."

After a few more moments of studying him, she finally nodded. He let out a breath and stood, taking her with him. He finally relaxed as he spun her around listening to her squeal and giggle before putting her down in front of her suitcase so that she could pick out her own clothes.

He grabbed the player quickly out of one of their bags and turned to her, "I'll be right back. Do NOT leave this room. I'm going to be right out in the hallway remember?" Then hurried out the door.

He knew he was running the risk that she'd end up being more upset than she already was, but he needed to catch Arthur first thing. Harry muttered a curse when he saw the back of the mans head going down the stairs. He rushed behind him so fast that he almost ran over him. Harry quickly sidestepped at the bottom of the stairs into the kitchen and took hold of Arthur's arm before he had a chance to go any further and asked him to go ahead and watch the dvd.

Harry was almost in a panic when he reentered the bedroom almost ten minutes later. After he'd asked Arthur to go ahead and watch the dvd, it took both him and Molly to get him to watch it alone as Hermione had wanted.

Some of the tension left his body and he began chuckling before the door even closed as he looked around the room. His bug had picked out clothes alright. It seemed that she had her stuffed animals try on several different shirts before she'd settled on the ones that she wanted them to wear. They all had some sort of ruffle or flowers on them. He supposed it was better than the little pink and purple and blue panties that he'd found Snuffy, Moony and Batty in one morning.

Then he finally saw her, Charlie Beth was still in her nightgown with all of her frilly clothed stuffed animals surrounding her on the bed as she slept.

Butt up in the air with her legs tucked underneath her. Tightly curled within one arm was her stuffed otter. Her face was snuggled into the fur of it.

It was one of the more brilliant things that Hermione had thought to do for her daughter.

Each animal, with the exception of Batty, was the patronus of one of her loved ones. They each were charmed to smell like that particular individual. Charlie Beth had known her loved ones by scent since birth. So, it came as no surprise that she had her nose tucked into her otter. If she couldn't have her mum, then she at least needed her mother's scent close to her.

His Bug had broken his heart and remade it ten times over since he'd been awake that morning.

As hard as it was, he pushed himself to move away from the scene but as he walked over to their bags he thought, 'You, Merlin and your God help me Mi. I'm going to need theirs and yours to get through this day.'


	10. A Father A Son and Pigtails

**Everything Harry Potter belongs solely to JK Rowling.**

**A Father A Son and Pigtails**

Harry had just pulled out one of Charlie Beth's favorite dresses for her to wear when his eye was caught by three kids waving at him from a frame on Ron's dresser. He used a quick spell to get the wrinkles out of it then set it aside to pick up the picture.

Hermione's grin shined across her whole face and he could almost hear her and Ron laughing.

'Merlin we were young.' He thought right before he was reminded of the last time that he'd seen one of the only three copies of that photo.

_**~begin memory~**_

_"Harry?"_

_"Yeah?"_

_When he got no response back Harry got up from the couch, laid Charlie Beth in her bassinet and went to find Hermione._

_She was in the guest room sitting on the floor in front of her old Hogwarts trunk. Pictures of the happier times of their youth scattered around her. The one in her hands was of the three of them. They were first-years._

_"Do you remember them?" She ran a finger over the three laughing children before they had the weight of the wizarding world thrust on their shoulders._

_Once he'd sat down on the bed behind her, she scooted back and leaned up against the bed between his legs. He bent and put his forearms on her shoulders and took the picture from her hands and held it out for them both to look at. _

_"Sometimes I do. Other times, I think being that young at all was just a dream."_

"_Do you think the Bug will have friends like we are now?"_

"_I don't know. I'm not sure if I'd even want her to. I mean, we fought a war to get where we are now. I'd like Charlie Beth to have great friends, just maybe not as jaded and intense as these three turned out to be." He told her while tapping the picture with his finger._

_"Are you sorry? Would you want it to have been different?"_

_He sat for a minute thinking before he admitted, "I guess the only honest answer I can give you is that I'll be forever grateful that Merlin and your God put you, Charlie Beth, Ron and all the other people I care for in my life and that I would hope that you'd all still be in my life without having to fight a war. But we did have to fight one and I wouldn't want to take the chance that you all might not be in my life if there wasn't a war so no I wouldn't change it."_

_"I once asked someone else that same question."_

_"Yeah?"_

_She nodded "Charlie. The night before his wedding."_

_Hermione closed her eyes, letting her head drop onto one of his knees as she kept talking. "He didn't want to think about it because then he'd have to admit the same. It would have meant that he probably wouldn't have met Julie. For me, it would have meant that I more than likely wouldn't have made friends with you and Ron and that would mean that I wouldn't have Charlie Beth. I used to feel guilty about it. I don't anymore and I wouldn't go back and change it. I would walk through fire and take an Avada for you, Ron and my baby girl."_

_After a moment she snorted then said. "I guess you did for us, huh?" _

_He let out a sad laugh and said, "Yeah, I'd do it again. Every day if I had to."_

_She didn't open her eyes as she said. "Ditto."_

_His eyebrows raised. "Ditto?"_

_She looked at him upside down and grinned. "Yes, ditto. It means I feel the same way. I would do the same for you as well."_

_"You know Hermione, I think you might need to stop talking to these Americans you live around so much. They'll have you speaking an entirely different language, using most of the same words that we have plus some new ones they've made up and decided to add themselves."_

_She grabbed the picture out of his hands and leaned forward laughing. "Stop it. The people here are wonderful and you know it." _

_Even though he agreed he didn't say anything._

_Instead, he sat back on the bed and watched as she shook her head. The waves in her hair moving with the light, showing off the different colors they held as she began to gather up the pictures she had scattered out on the floor while continuing to chatter on about how the word 'Ditto' was actually Latin based._

_**~end memory~**_

He found himself smiling when he heard a tap on the door right before it opened.

Arthur walked in and just before he was about to say something he stopped and looked around the room. Harry hadn't picked up the clothes that Charlie Beth had tried on her stuffed animals yet, so they were strung from the closet to the bed and all the way back to the window.

The man chuckled before saying, "When you have a minute come find me."

Harry nodded and Arthur quietly left the room.

Then a thought occurred to him.

Grabbing his own clothes, he rushed to catch up with him.

Once out in the hallway, he raised his voice a little and said, "Hey Arthur!" When he saw him turn to look at him Harry asked, "Would you mind doing me a favor?"

Fifteen minutes later, Harry re-entered the bedroom that he and Charlie Beth were staying in and stopped. It was then his turn to look around the room shocked. The entire thing had been picked up and Charlie Beth was dressed and sitting on the bed playing with her stuffed weasel while Arthur was putting her hair up in pigtails the muggle way.

The man looked up and grinned at the astonished look on his face. "I picked up a bit then Charlie Beth and I went and found her Granny to help to get her bathed and dressed."

Harry walked over and put his dirty clothes and wet towel down by their bags.

"Molly wanted to finish breakfast and since I had to learn to put Ginny's hair up in pig-tails and such when she was little, I told her I'd finish brushing her hair out and put it up."

Harry sat down and began putting his shoes on as he said, "Thank you. Honestly."

Arthur had just finished and put the brush down then studied him for a moment.

Then in a tone that Harry wasn't used to Arthur addressing him with he said, "I know it might feel like it but you're not alone son. You have family right here in this house that loves you and will do anything and everything they can to help. Family is always there for each other. Remember that." It was the same one Arthur used when addressing Ron and his brothers if he wanted them to know he was serious about something. It was the dad tone.

A lump formed in his throat making it impossible for him to do anything but swallow and nod against the blur of his eyes. He was grateful that Arthur continued talking so he could turn his head and quickly wipe them.

"Now, come. I'd like you to watch the dvd Hermione left me and I'm sure that this little one would like some breakfast." Arthur grabbed up Charlie Beth who had her otter tucked under one arm and started toward the door while he continued speaking, "I left the um… device on the bed. Go ahead and watch it in there. Then come down and after you and I finish eating there are somethings we need to pick up from Diagon Ally."

Harry felt both relieved and guilty for feeling relieved at not having to take the lead and make all the decisions all by himself anymore. That confusing thought made itself known as he followed them down the hall.

However, his thoughts weren't so messed up that he didn't notice that his Bug was still being very calm and silent, so when he stopped at Molly and Arthur's bedroom door, he made it a point to say, "I'll be down right after I'm finished watching the dvd Bug. Be good for Granny and Pa."

He knew she heard him even if he couldn't see her face as Arthur walked down the stairs with her in his arms. As he closed the door to the room, he hoped Charlie Beth's calm silence wouldn't skip Molly's notice either.


	11. Humming Singing and Love

My apologies for the long delay in updating. My only excuse is that life got in the way.

Everything always has been and always will be the property of Ms. Rowlings

~Humming Singing and Love~

Charlie Beth had been almost one and a half the first time that Molly heard her hum and sing at breakfast. It was the first time she was able to stay with them for an entire weekend under the guise of going to visit her ailing Aunt Muriel. Who, in all honesty, was in St. Mongo's at the time with pneumonia. The threat of sickness and the old woman's general demeanor toward everyone kept others from wanting anything to do with her. Guilt had made Molly spend a few hours before she left and after she came back at the cantankerous elderly woman's bedside. Truly being around her was trying at the best of times but when she was ill her Aunt Muriel was unbearable.

Because of the secrecy regarding them and the distance, apart from Charlie Beth's birth, Molly hadn't been able to stay for more than a day when she went to visit. Most of those times she got there after breakfast and left late that same evening. She had repeatedly used the excuse of spending a bit of time and helping her aging Aunt that no one could stand to be around. The first time she heard Charlie Beth humming and singing at breakfast was no different.

It became apparent pretty quickly that first morning with Hermione and Charlie Beth that it was going to be very different from the ones that Molly was used to in her own home. Where it was a scene of chaos at the Burrow table in the mornings, that morning started quietly.

Molly had sat with a cup of tea watching as Hermione fixed two different drinks for the child. One held a little bit of warm tea and the other some juice. Then placed the two sippy cups in front of Charlie Beth and asked which song they should start with that morning. After just a few moments Molly heard Charlie Beth begin to hum. She couldn't tell what song it was, but Hermione seemed to know it and hummed along with her for a little bit then sang a few words. After she drank a bit of both her tea and juice, Hermione set down a thick pink milky liquid that smelled of vitamins and strawberries. By then the first song was finished and even though she hadn't finished her other drinks, Hermione tore off little pieces of her toast with butter and jam and sat it in front of her to munch on as they continued to sing and hum along to nursery rhymes. Then came a few small cut up pieces of fruit. Molly watched as Charlie Beth drank and ate a little bit of everything she was given. By the end of it, her quiet hummingbird had gone from humming to singing at times with her mum.

It wasn't till the following morning that Molly realized that Charlie Beth was only given something new when she progressed from humming to singing a few words to starting new songs and trying to sing them completely. Well, as completely as a one and a half-year-old could.

Then Charlie Beth had to use her words and ask as properly as she could before she was allowed to leave the breakfast table.

It didn't take a genius to see that this was an everyday process for them both, so Molly just sat quietly with her breakfast and tea and watched the routine play out before her.

As they finished washing the dishes that first morning Molly asked Hermione about it. She'd explained that it helped her vocal cords loosen up. The more they were worked the easier it was for Charlie Beth to eat and speak throughout the day. It allowed the stuttering to taper off.

It was something that Molly had been preparing for since Hermione told her she wasn't going to make it. She'd went through and wrote down several of Charlie Beth's favorite songs that she hadn't known.

So, when Arthur had set her in her toddle seat at the table and she had put Charlie Beth's drinks in front of her she expected her granddaughter to begin to hum. She didn't.

In fact, she hadn't said or made any sounds at all. As Molly sat down in her own seat she said, "So what are we humming this morning?" The little girl just hugged her otter tighter to her and shook her head in denial.

She had been hoping that it was going to be easy since the child seemed to be relatively ok as she quickly bathed and dressed her that morning. Molly couldn't fault her for the mood though. So, she smiled and asked, "Would you like me to pick then?"

Charlie Beth was staring at the sippy cups as she shook her head that time

"Ok, then how about we just concentrate on having our breakfast?"

Again, she shook her head no.

Letting out a sigh Molly said, "Sweetheart, you know the rules. You must eat even if you don't want to sing today."

This time she closed her eyes and shook her head no.

"You know that you're going to have stay at the table until at least your strawberry drink is gone then."

Silence was her answer. Letting out another sigh she looked over at her husband to see him tucked into his food watching what was happening.

When he raised his eyebrows in askance, she explained "The drinks and singing help her voice."

Nodding Arthur wiped his mouth and made his eyes big to show a faux look of excitement and surprise. "What's this now? You didn't tell me you could sing! You know, I think I'll try this morning." Then he made a big show of taking a large drink of his tea and then clearing his throat before letting out "LAAH LAAAAHHH LAAH LAAAAAAAAAAH. DAAAAH DAAAAAH DAAAAAH DAAAAAAH." As a wide-eyed Charlie Beth watched him then giggled, Molly made a face and covered her ears.

When he stopped the racket, he looked at his granddaughter and asked, "Not good?" When she shook her head no, Arthur picked up her drink and pretended to take a drink and cleared his throat again and sang "IS THIS BETTERRRRR?!"

Molly shook her head along with Charlie Beth and then offered some advice. "I think you're supposed to start with humming first." Watching as the little girl nodded along with what she was telling him.

"Is that so? Hmm…maybe you should show me first then." He said then he turned to look at Charlie Beth. "Perhaps both of you could teach me?"

Without asking what song she wanted to start with Molly began humming the ABC song. It didn't take very long till she heard Charlie Beth hum with her every little bit.

Molly had fallen in love with her husband many times over the years. That morning she fell for him so hard she ached with it. To Molly, there was no smarter, no more handsome, no better man in the world than Arthur Weasley.


	12. No Stopping It

This was easy and difficult to write at the same time.

As ever, everything belongs to Ms. Rowlings.

**~~No Stopping It~~**

He felt like he couldn't breathe. Her face was already a blur as he watched her reach up and turn the camera off. Again. It was the third time that he'd sat through it.

He wanted to shout at the screen and tell her to come back.

Be alive..

Stay...

Please...

Please stay...

Even if it's just for a little while. Just so that he could hug her. Hear her lecture him. To talk to her. To tell her again how sorry he was that he couldn't help her more. Tell her of his thankfulness….tell her of his admiration….tell her of his respect….tell her of his love….for her.

Again..

Just so she knew...

Just one more time...

Just one more time...

He hurt so bad that he was sure he was dying. His chest ached and it didn't matter how big a breath he took or how much he told himself that it was going to be ok. Because right then it wasn't going to be ok. It wasn't ok. She was gone and there was nothing he could do to bring her back.

A mournful whine came from somewhere inside of him as arms wrapped themselves around him and a voice said, "Come on son."

Harry couldn't stop the shaking and sobs. He was trying but when Arthur said, "It's ok. No one's here but me" he let himself just hurt.

The only thing his brain was capable of thinking was…

"I miss her. I miss her. I miss her so much it hurts. Merlin, please... I miss her."

"I know you do son."

Harry hadn't even known that he'd said the words out loud. It didn't matter. It wouldn't bring her back. There was nothing he could say or do to bring her back. That truth sat like a hard hot rock in the pit of his stomach. Nothing would change it.

Pulling himself back a bit he tried again to get himself under control. He didn't know how long he'd been there like that, but he knew couldn't let Charlie Beth see him that way. He leaned his head back and began taking deep breaths. It seemed to work this time. The ache didn't leave. He knew it never would. But at least the tears began to slow.

He honestly didn't know what came over him. He never let himself go like that before.

But he just couldn't seem to stop it once it started.

As he harshly wiped the tears away from his cheeks he mumbled, "I'm sorry Arthur." He glanced over to see the man kneeling beside him holding out a handkerchief. Harry reached out to grab it only for Arthur to hold onto it till he looked at him.

"Harry, **_never_** apologize for loving someone that much."

He didn't want to think about everything that was understood in that statement right then. So he nodded and took the scrap of cloth to wipe his face.

He looked around for the first time to notice that he was sitting on the floor against the bed. He didn't know when he had slid from the bed or how long the man in front of him had been there but the dvd player was sitting beside him on the floor with the screen shut.

When he had started watching it, he was setting on the bed. His mind was whirling trying to make some sort of sense of everything.

"Come on Harry."

He looked up to see that Arthur had stood up. Nodding again because his mind felt numb, he pushed himself off the floor and followed the man out of the room.

"We'll take the back way down."

He was on auto-pilot so that what he was feeling couldn't take over again. So he concentrated his thoughts on the fact that Arthur hadn't said anything about the way he had found Harry crying.

That was until the man mentioned a back way down out of the house.

To his knowledge, there was no back way down. The boys and Ginny definitely would have used it many times. Especially the twins.

He sniffed hard and cleared his throat before asking, "Back way?"

"Yes, and I'd appreciate it if you didn't mention it to anyone. You'll be the first to know about it and I'm certain Molly would be upset with me for putting it in to begin with."

"Yes, sir." Harry couldn't help but wonder where they were going as they passed both the twin's room then Ron's room. The hall ended unless you took a left and took the stairs to the third floor.

At the end of the hall was a linen closet that he watched Arthur open, glance back over his shoulder, and then touched or pulled something on the inside. He really couldn't be sure because it was so quick. Then the entire thing opened towards them.

Harry knew his eyes had to be the size of bludgers.

"Quickly now," Arthur said as he stepped aside to let him pass.

Harry tucked himself into the passage and started down the narrow stairs. It was a small space between the inner wall and the outer wall. No more than a few feet wide at most. As he got to the bottom, he heard Arthur whisper, "There's a piece of wood to the right of that panel there. Just push it up and step out."

As he did, he found that the door opened up to a small space that was in between the house and the gardening shed.

That's when Harry remembered, "Wait, wait. I have to tell Bug that I'm leaving."

"It'll be alright. She thinks you're taking a nap and we won't be gone that long." Then the older man smiled and added, "Besides she's on an adventure."

When he raised eyebrows, Arthur said, "Molly's taken her to feed and water the chickens."

At Harry's pause, Arthur told him, "Stop worrying. That woman raised seven kids including yourself half the time. She won't let anything happen to her."

Harry felt the heat rise in his cheeks. He knew that she wouldn't and that the blood wards were up and strong. Still, the apprehension was there but he knew he couldn't let that fear stop him.

So as followed the man to the edge of the property to apparate Harry forced himself to voice his next thoughts, "Right now I'm also honestly worried about the chickens. They don't stand a chance against the Bug if she decides to hug one."

Arthurs loud laugh could be heard right before the two cracks that signaled their departure.


	13. Chickies and Tea

Sorry for the delay. As always, life or the lack of it, has gotten in the way again.

It is Ms. Rowling's toybox. I'm just playing with her toys.

**~~~Chickies and Tea~~~**

As she dressed her granddaughter for the second time that day, Molly decided she might just have to kill her husband for suggesting that she take Charlie Beth to help her feed the chickens. Well, maybe not kill but very possibly seriously maim. At the very least quietly yell at him for such a terrible idea.

When Arthur had come down and told her that the boy was turning himself inside out and was going take Harry out for a bit, his idea had seemed like a good one. Molly knew that she was going to have to keep Charlie Beth entertained until they could get back.

It seemed full proof. She'd be right beside her, teaching her exactly how to do things.

She knew Harry wouldn't and couldn't tolerate being away from the little one for long, but she did agree he needed time. Even if it were in small increments.

So, they had told Charlie Beth that her Air was taking a nap and asked if she'd like to help feed the chickens. The little girl was beyond_ excited_ to see the fluffy 'chickies.'

And the chickens did get just as _excited_.

Well, at first, they weren't excited at all. The Weasley chickens were generally so lazy and docile they were almost pets. Then they became an entirely different kind of _excited_ than Charlie Beth.

In a matter of moments, they became so_ fearfully_ _excited_ they started darting around while losing feathers and squawking at the top of their lungs as if a butcher were after them. Except it wasn't a butcher, just a _very happily excited_ 3-year-old determined to give them all a hug.

The poor things were trying their hardest to get into the coop. Not an easy task with a hyper toddler chasing you.

Molly had forgotten how quick Charlie Beth could be and how much trouble she could cause in a very short amount of time.

All she had done was reach down to grab the feed bucket beside her feet and by the time she stood back up the entire fenced-in pen was in chaos. Charlie Beth had already grabbed Edith, her `fluffiest` laying hen, and had her in a sort of headlock while trying to also pick up Alberta as well.

All while giggling and dashing about along with the rest of the hens.

It took her a good 10 minutes to get things calmed down and make Charlie Beth leave the chickens alone and climb out of the coop.

Molly was pretty sure her chickens were now on strike and they wouldn't be having any eggs for a bit. She wasn't even sure how long it would take before they would come out of the coop.

It then took her another 20 minutes to give Charlie Beth a bath.

She'd place an intense cleaning spell over herself earlier but she still didn't feel clean. It was probably because a random feather fell out of her hair just moments ago.

Yes, later when she and Arthur were alone, she was definitely going to tell him _exactly_ what she thought of his idea.

But right then, with Charlie Beth looking up at her smiling she knew that it was going to be impossible to stay upset. So, for the moment, she decided that she needed a cup of tea.

After picking the little girl up off the bed she asked, "How about you and Granny go have some tea and biscuits?"

She was rewarded with an eager nod.

With all the excitement that had gone on, Molly knew it wouldn't be long till Charlie Beth would be sleepy and that she'd need to watch her closely. There were too many places at the Burrow for her to hide and nap in.

Charlie Beth still hadn't said much that morning, but with Arthur's encouragement she had hummed along with her at breakfast and her laugh as she chased the chickens about was bright and clear.

As she entered the kitchen Molly decided, so far, considering everything, it hadn't been bad morning at all.


	14. No Need for Typical to have Perfection

Everything Harry Potter belongs solely to JK Rowling.

* * *

**No Need for Typical to have Perfection**

Typically, when one gets to feel and hear their child the first time it's almost always while the mother is still pregnant or right after the baby is born.

Not waking up to your 3 yr old daughter that you found out about the day before sitting behind you on a couch that you've been passed out face down on.

How she tucked herself in between him and the back of the couch and still had room to wiggle and move around he had no idea but getting back there without waking him was probably easy to do considering how drunk he'd gotten the night before.

The way he was physically feeling right then was a good reminder of why he didn't drink muggle whiskey. It was quick and didn't take much to put him or any magical person on their arse.

He wasn't really sure how long she'd been there but he'd woke up about few minutes prior wishing like hell that he'd never drunk the stuff to begin with but also savoring the quiet giggles and the touch of his daughter's little fingers as they chased his Chinese Fireball dragon tattoo across his shoulders.

Charlie was also more than a little shocked to find that the dragon was playing back with her. It was blowing little puffs of smoke at her then circling back to run up underneath her fingers again as if it wanted her to keep petting it. If the tattooed dragon had been truly irritated, it would have come up over his shoulder onto his chest and blasted a breath hot enough to scorch a small patch of skin. It hadn't had any qualms in the past about letting Charlie know when it wanted him to get who or whatever it was away from it.

After making the circle a few more times the dragon sat still refusing to move again. 'huh' Charlie thought, 'must be done playing.'

"Aww…ssso-kay" he heard her whisper to it. "T-tired?" He almost chuckled at the question but didn't want to interrupt her. It was way too precious of a moment to disturb. "L-lay dow then an…an clo-close yer eyyes." He could feel the tattoo curl up as she stroked along it's back. The damn thing was still letting out little puffs of smoke as if it were purring. "ssshh." She told it. "I l-like you t-too."

As he laid there with his daughter putting his magically enhanced tattoo to sleep (that didn't actually need to be put to sleep) he found that he was also surprised at how comfortable she was with being so close to him. Charlie wasn't the tallest of the Weasley boys, but he was most certainly the largest. Dealing with dragons daily either made you smarter and stronger or deader. He chose to go with the smarter and stronger options.

He was a generally happy bloke, which meant that he didn't tend to look mean unless he had a very good reason to be upset, and for Charlie that wasn't all that often. Still, he'd been a little worried that his size would scare her.

Truthfully, other than his two youngest siblings, he hadn't been around that many little kids to know just what kind of reaction they would have to him. Especially someone as young as her.

Then her words from the previous night came back to him. She knew about him. She knew him. Her daddy. She'd probably seen pictures. It made him feel a little better about things. Not much but a little.

"CHARLIE BETH where did you go!?"

Both he and his daughter jumped at the sound of his mother's voice. Quickly he sat up, twisted, and looked over the back of the couch into the kitchen.

He was pretty sure his head was going to fall off with the movement. So, he closed his eyes and tried to swallow down the sick feeling that came with it.

As he finished turning his body to a sitting position, Charlie felt his daughter duck down further between him and the back of the couch.

He opened his eyes back up just as his mum, who was carrying a stuffed otter, began to walk into the room. She paused in the doorway looking surprised to see him there.

"Charlie? What are you doing down here? I heard your brother's come up the stairs earlier this morning. I thought you were probably with them."

He wanted to answer her but between his head and his stomach, he was having trouble forming words that weren't going to taste like throw up after speaking them.

When he didn't answer she rolled her eyes and said, "There's hangover potion in the bathroom cabinet. By the looks of you, and how loud they were coming up the stairs this morning, I'm sure your brothers will need it as well."

She was just about to turn and walk back into the kitchen when she stopped and asked, "Have you seen your daughter? She was right beside me as I was cleaning up a bit in the kitchen, turned around once and she was gone."

Charlie felt a little pat on his stomach, so he glanced down. She'd curled herself into a ball and had one small finger, complete with blue sparkly nail polish, over her lips in the universal sign for 'don't tell'.

Looking back up at his mum, he tried clearing his throat but ended up hoarsely croaking at her, "No mum. Haven't seen her."

The smile that his mum had on her face was wasted on him because he'd quickly looked back down the moment his daughter had wrapped her little arms (as far as she could get them) around him in a hug, while only half whispering, "Tha-thain you."

He worried for a minute that she might have given herself away with how loud her voice had been and glanced back up his mum to see that she had already walked back into the kitchen. Somehow, somewhere in the back of his mind, it dawned on him that there was no way that his mum didn't see him look down or hear Charlie Beth. But the fog of the hangover had kept him from coming to that conclusion immediately.

Internally rolling his eyes at himself he let out the breath he'd drew and held expecting of his mother's wrath.

She'd walked away because she knew that Charlie Beth was with him.

He loved his mum. She could be as overprotective as a mother dragon. Overbearing about something until proven wrong when she thought her way was the only correct one and way too nosey at times. But she only wanted what would keep her children safe and happy. And even if she didn't like it and thought it was reckless, she always came through and was supportive in the end.

When he looked back down at her Charlie Beth had let go and was watching him with a smile. He didn't want to scare but the need to hold her overtook any worry he had, and he picked up his tiny daughter hugging her anyway.

"You're welcome." He hoarsely whispered back at her.

Mindful that she didn't know him yet, he pulled back and held her out as he eased back to lay down on the couch.

She let out a squeal of surprise and giggled when he'd quickly lifted her higher in the air.

She was beyond adorable.

When she smiled and laughed it was with her whole being. She showed every little tooth as the dimple that matched his own deepened. Her eyes were bright and sparkled with no fear.

Her hair was pulled up into two pigtails that had been left loose so her strawberry blonde curls hung naturally. She had on a little sleeveless dress that was muggle denim on top attached to a white skirt that had bright yellow flowers printed on it that ended at her knees. On her tiny feet were little blue sandals. The straps looked like it matched the denim cloth at the top of the dress. And all her little fingernails and toenails were painted with blue sparkly nail polish.

Charlie knew right then that there hadn't been and wouldn't ever be another little girl born that was as beautiful and perfect as _his_ daughter was.

From her giggle and bright brown eyes, down to her sparkly nail polish and penchant for getting herself into trouble with her grandmum, she was absolutely perfect in every way.

The smile left her face when he finally sat her down on his stomach. He worried for a moment that she was going to get upset, but she just sat and looked at him.

She had her mother's eyes. The same shape, the same color, the same intensity when she was studying or watching something to see what would happen next.

Her head tilted just a little to the side and a crease formed between her eyebrows like she couldn't figure out what he was up to.

That thought made him chuckle.

From the shocked look on her face, he could tell that the rumble of his chest when he laughed had surprised her.

Her eyes were wide as she looked down and placed both hands on his chest and said, "A-again…pa-lease?" then looked back up at him. The excitement on her face made him chuckle again. This time she giggled along with him.

He wasn't sure what prompted him to do it, but after just a moment he said, "Hi. Charlie Beth."

The smile on her face didn't leave her again like he thought it might. But she did push against his chest and begin to move around. He couldn't help but feel disappointed that she wanted to get down, but he let his hands drop from where he was still holding onto her so that she could.

Charlie watched as she scooted herself around until she was laying on his stomach and chest with her head on his shoulder.

He instinctively wrapped his arms back around her, and just held her like that as he rubbed his hand lightly up and down her back. He barely had to move to do it. She was such a little thing. One of his hands spanned almost her entire back. 'Are all 3yr olds this small?' drifted through his head. Then he tried to remember if Ginny was ever that little and then winced. It felt like there was someone playing drums on his brain. Evidently, thinking beyond random immediate thoughts was not something that should be done with a hangover.

His head was pounding but he wasn't about to get up. So, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath. It didn't take the headache away but whatever her scent was it was calming to him. It seemed to soothe his nerves and that had an almost immediate settling affect his stomach.

She smelled clean and soft and lightly sweet. Fresh. Like being outside on a summer day sitting on a freshly mowed lawn with the sun warming your skin while eating an apple or watermelon. All that with a light breeze to mix all the smells and sunlight and then soften them as they float through the air. Everything about it was soothing to him.

It was only a few minutes later that he glanced down when he felt her breathing deepen. His baby girl had gotten herself comfortable and fallen asleep on him. A slight chuckle left him when he realized that it had been the perfect way to meet his daughter for the first time.

As he watched her, one thought went through his head. This little being was his future. He couldn't believe how right that felt.

Then a love like he didn't think could ever exist wrapped itself around his body and sank into him down through his magical core, permeating his soul.

This love was sweet and steady, unblemished, complete, and unending.

It was her.

He didn't know how he knew but he knew without a shadow of a doubt that it was how his Charlie Beth felt about him. A deep-seated desire to make her happy while keeping her safe settled in his heart and gut. His magical flashed out, flowing over her with paternal love. It felt like his entire self ~mind, body, and spirit~ had exploded with the strongest love he'd ever had for anyone or anything and directed itself solely at his baby girl. He knew he was completely unworthy, absolutely terrified, and yet eternally grateful at the same time.

Charlie was so overcome by everything that had just happened that he was trembling and quietly crying. But that didn't matter. Somehow his heart was now laying on top of his chest instead of within it. It was currently asleep, wearing pigtails and blue sparkly nail polish and hiding from her grandmum.

He lifted one hand and wiped the tears from his face as he chuckled again and just let himself feel the joy of it all. She was a gift. One that he was going to happily spend his life repaying Hermione for by being the best dad he could. Or at least trying to.

Charlie closed his eyes then and held her a little tighter. He knew that there wasn't _anything_ in the heavens or on earth that would or even could make him change it.

He knew it wasn't going to be easy. That it was going to take work to get to know her and be in her life. He knew that Harry was always going to be an immediate part of that life as well and he wasn't exactly sure what that meant and he knew there were going to be problems along the way. But Charlie felt safe that somehow things would work out.

He had hope.

It wasn't very long before his breathing was just as deep as his daughters.

~That's the way his mum found them a short half-hour later.

Asleep with his arms wrapped around his little girl on his chest with her nose tucked into the crook of his neck.

It was a scene that Molly had prayed for probably a thousand times. Her eyes watered but she made herself take a deep breath, gently tuck the stuffed otter under her granddaughter's arm, turn and walk to the stairs leaving her son and his child alone to continue on together *in the land of Nod.

Besides they still had a couple of hours left before the meeting and she needed to get Bill and Percy up and have a talk with them.

* * *

*The Land Of Nod

by Robert Louis Stevenson


End file.
